Synthesis of titanium dioxide-reduced graphite oxide nanocomposites and their photocatalytic performance

Chemically bonded titanium dioxide (TiO₂)-reduced graphite oxide (RGO) composites have been successfully prepared with graphite oxide and peroxotitanium complex by low-temperature liquid reaction. The prepared TiO₂ nanoparticles with diameters of about 10 nm consisted of anatase phase and a slight amount of brookite phase. In the TiO₂-RGO composites, TiO₂ nanoparticles were uniformly dispersed on the RGO surface from the scanning electron microscopy images. The as-prepared TiO₂-RGO composites exhibited much higher efficiency in the degradation of methylene blue under ultraviolet light irradiation compared with pure TiO₂ nanoparticles. In addition, the influences of the RGO content in the TiO₂-RGO composites on the photocatalytic degradation activity were also researched.