Bi@Bi4Ti3O12/TiO2 films on glass with photocatalytic and self-cleaning performance

A stable and translucent Bi@Bi₄Ti₃O₁₂/TiO₂ film was fabricated on conventional glass substrates for the first time. The film exhibited a good photocatalytic performance and efficient self-cleaning capability against organic dyes under full spectral irradiation and visible light irradiation. Bi₄Ti₃O₁₂/TiO₂ film was first prepared on a glass substrate with colloidal silica as a high temperature binder, followed by implantation of nanoscale Bi in it by an in-situ partially reduction of Bi₄Ti₃O₁₂ to generate Bi@Bi₄Ti₃O₁₂/TiO₂ films. The improved photocatalytic ability is probably attributed to the surface plasmon resonance of Bi atom as well as the enhanced electron transfer efficiency and synergistic effect of Bi₄Ti₃O₁₂ and TiO₂. According to trapping experiments, hydroxyl radicals (OH) were active species in the photocatalytic degradation of dyes under full spectral light irradiation and possible photocatalytic mechanism was proposed. The film prepared in this work may well have potential practical applications in many aspects, such as cleansing treatments for high building external decorative panels and also systematic characterization of the film suggests that the in-situ reduction is an effective and simple way to produce nanoscale Bi@Bi₄Ti₃O₁₂.