Table 1.
Properties of the as-synthesized Aux/TiO2 and Au3M3/TiO2 photocatalysts.
| Photocatalyst | Au Loading (wt. %) a | M Loading (wt. %) a | Decorated Metal Particle Size (nm) b | Bandgap Energy (eV) c | Ti3+/Ti4+ d |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Au1/TiO2 | 0.98 ± 0.10 | n.d. | 6.36 ± 0.75 | 3.00 | 0.1220 |
| Au3/TiO2 | 3.02 ± 0.21 | n.d. | 6.69 ± 0.86 | 3.00 | 0.1478 |
| Au5/TiO2 | 4.96 ± 0.19 | n.d. | 10.04 ± 1.11 | 2.94 | 0.2198 |
| Au7/TiO2 | 7.08 ± 0.35 | n.d. | 10.84 ± 1.01 | 2.80 | 0.2412 |
| Au3Bi3/TiO2 | 2.96 ± 0.12 | 3.11 ± 0.28 | 11.84 ± 1.11 | 2.85 | 0.1960 |
| Au3Pt3/TiO2 | 3.06 ± 0.10 | 3.01 ± 0.20 | 7.61 ± 0.91 | 2.85 | 0.1941 |
| Au3Pd3/TiO2 | 3.09 ± 0.14 | 3.05 ± 0.22 | 9.66 ± 1.06 | 2.79 | 0.3561 |
a Estimated from the scanning electron microscopy–energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometry (SEM–EDS) analysis; b Average (± standard deviation (SD)) metal particle size obtained from the transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analysis; c Calculated from Tauc’s plot (plot of (αhν)1/n against (hν)); d Calculated from area under deconvoluted high-resolution X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (HR-XPS) peak of Ti2p; n.d., not detected.