Characterization and activity of visible-light-driven TiO₂ photocatalyst codoped with nitrogen and cerium

Nitrogen and cerium codoped TiO₂ photocatalysts were prepared by a modified sol-gel process with doping precursors of cerium nitrate and urea, and characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetry-differential scanning calorimetry (TG-DSC), X-ray photoelectron spectra (XPS) and ultraviolet-visible light diffuse reflectance spectra (UV-vis DRS). Results indicate that anatase TiO₂ is the dominant crystalline type in as-prepared samples, and CeO₂ crystallites appear as the doping ratio of Ce/Ti reaches to 3.0 at%. The TiO₂ starts to transform from amorphous phase to anatase at 987.1 K during calcination, according to the TG-DSC curves. The XPS show that three major metal ions of Ce³⁺, Ce⁴⁺, Ti⁴⁺ and one minor metal ion of Ti³⁺ coexist on the surface. The codoped TiO₂ exhibits significant absorption within the range of 400-500 nm compared to the non-doped and only nitrogen-doped TiO₂. The enhanced photocatalytic activity of the codoped TiO₂ is demonstrated through degradation of methyl orange under visible light irradiation.