Surface and Electrochemical Characterization of N-Fe-doped-TiO2 Nanoparticle Prepared by Hydrothermal and Facile Electro-Deposition Method for Visible Light Driven Pollutant Removal

Nitrogen-doped TiO 2 and Fe-N-TiO 2 nanoparticles having rectangular morphology were prepared by a hydrothermal method. A fixed amount N and Fe (III) chlorides was incorporated in a matrix of TiO 2 lattice. The XRD patterns of the as-prepared N- and Fe-doped TiO 2 samples show the presence of only the characteristic peaks of the anatase phase. The formation of the anatase phase in the N-doped TiO 2 photo catalyst was further confirmed by Raman spectroscopy. The particle size of the prepared samples was determined by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analysis as well as by a particle size analyser. The TEM images revealed that the N-doped TiO 2 nanoparticles possessed a rectangular morphology and had a particle size in the range of 5–10 nm. The average particle size of the Fe- TiO 2 nanoparticles was found to be in the range of 2–10 nm. The photo electrochemical and photocatalytic properties of the as-prepared N- TiO 2 and N-Fe-TiO 2 nanoparticles towards the UV and Visible light condition and catalytic degradation of methylene blue (MB) dye were examined under visible light. These N- and Fe-doped TiO 2 nanoparticles are promising materials for the generation of hydrogen fuel through water splitting in the presence of solar light owing to the alteration in their band gaps after heteroatom modification.