Concurrent role of metal (Sn, Zn) and N species in enhancing the photocatalytic activity of TiO2 under solar light

TiO2 modification by both non-metal and metal species is a popular strategy to promote the semiconductor visible light absorption and photocatalytic performance. In this work, tin and zinc are compared as metal promoters to enhance the photocatalytic activity of N-doped TiO2 under solar light. The synthesized samples were tested under both UV and simulated solar irradiation toward the photocatalytic degradation of tetracycline, an emerging water pollutant. All copromoted samples (N+Sn and N+Zn) revealed higher efficiency under solar light in the mineralization of the pollutant with respect to both the pristine and N-doped ones. The enhanced photocatalytic efficiency of these samples was traced back to the modifications introduced by the different guest species to the structural (X-ray Powder Diffraction, XRPD), morphological (High-Resolution Transmission Electron Microscopy, HR-TEM and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller analysis, BET), spectroscopic (X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy, XPS, Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy, EDX and Diffuse Reflectance Spectroscopy, DRS) and surface features (ζ-potential). In this regard, the increased surface area, the modifications of the phase composition and the enhanced visible light harvesting seem to play a pivotal role in affecting the photocatalytic performance. Mass spectrometry analyses allowed us to identify several reaction intermediates and propose different degradation mechanisms depending on the type of metal promoter.