Synthesis and enhanced photocatalytic activity of Zr-doped N-TiO₂ nanostructures

We report herein, synthesis of Zr doped N-TiO₂ prepared by simple microwave assisted method. From XRD study it reveals that Zr⁺⁴ ions are substituted in the lattice of N-TiO₂ with average crystallite size of 12 nm. The interplanar distance (d) obtained from HRTEM was found to be 0.35 nm which confirms the anatase phase of TiO₂. An optimal Zr content shows lowest PL intensity which supports the reduction in recombination rate of charge carrier species. Moreover, to know photocatalytic activity, we have tested N-TiO₂ and Zr doped N-TiO₂ nanomaterials for degradation of methyl orange (MO) and gemifloxacin mesylate (GFM, antibiotic drug) under UV light. The photodegradation of MO and GFM were found to be 94 and 89 % within 60 and 40 min respectively. An increment of 45 % in the photodegradation of MO by 0.5 mol% Zr doped TiO₂ was obtained as compared to N-TiO₂. The probable mechanism for Zr doped N-TiO₂ is also discussed. Photodegradation of drug was also supported by decrease in antibiotic activity of photodegraded drug sample against E. coli.