Fabrication of TiO₂ nanorod assembly grafted rGO (rGO@TiO₂-NR) hybridized flake-like photocatalyst

To efficiently separate the photo-generated electron–hole pairs of TiO₂ hybrid, anatase TiO₂ nanorod assembly grafted reduced graphene oxides (rGO@ TiO₂-NR) hybrid was successfully fabricated using potassium titanium oxalate (PTO) and graphene oxides (GO) as starting materials and diethylene glycol (DEG) as reductant. The effect of GO content on the structure and photocatalytic activity of rGO@ TiO₂-NR composite was systematically studied. Results show that, in the absence of GO, only TiO₂ microsphere assembly is obtained from TiO₂ nanorods. The presence of GO results in the formation of a flake-like TiO₂nanorod-assembled grafted rGO hybrid. The photocatalytic activity of rGO@ TiO₂-NR composite increases first and then decreases with increase in the amount of GO from 0 wt.% to 10 wt.%. The hybridized S4 sample prepared with 4 wt.% GO possesses the highest photocatalytic activity with a constant rate of 0.039 min⁻¹ in the photocataytic degradation of Brilliant X-3B dye (X3B); this sample was enhanced more than three times when compared with pure TiO2 sample (0.012 min⁻¹). The enhanced photocatalytic activity of the rGO@ TiO₂-NR hybrid was attributed to the strong interaction between TiO₂ nanorods and rGO. The unique hierarchical structure of 1D nanorod assembly TiO₂–rGO flakes facilitates the injection and transfer of photo-generated electrons from TiO₂ to graphene, thus retarding the recombination of electron–hole pairs and enhancing the photocatalytic activity. The enlarged BET surface areas, not only increasing the number of active sites, but also facilitating the adsorption of the dye, and improved light-harvesting ability also contribute to the enhanced photoreactivity of rGO@ TiO₂-NR hybrid. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V.