Dariusz Mitoraj

Visible light inactivation of bacteria and fungi by modified titanium dioxide.

Visible light induced photocatalytic inactivation of bacteria (Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Enterococcus faecalis) and fungi (Candida albicans, Aspergillus niger) was tested. Carbon-doped titanium dioxide and TiO2 modified with platinum(IV) chloride complexes were used as suspension or immobilised at the surface of plastic plates. A biocidal effect was observed under visible light irradiation in the case of E. coli in the presence of both photocatalysts. The platinum(IV) modified titania exhibited a higher inactivation effect, also in the absence of light. The mechanism of visible light induced photoinactivation is briefly discussed. The observed detrimental effect of photocatalysts on various microorganism groups decreases in the order: E. coli > S. aureus approximately E. faecalis>>C. albicans approximately A. niger. This sequence results most probably from differences in cell wall or cell membrane structures in these microorganisms and is not related to the ability of catalase production.

On the Mechanism of Urea-Induced Titania Modification

The mechanism of surface modification of titania by calcination with urea at 400 degrees C was investigated by substituting urea by its thermal decomposition products. It was found that during the urea-induced process titania acts as a thermal catalyst for the conversion of intermediate isocyanic acid to cyanamide. Trimerization of the latter produces melamine followed by polycondensation to melem- and melon-based poly(aminotri-s-triazine) derivatives. Subsequently, amino groups of the latter finish the process by formation of Ti--N bonds through condensation with the OH-terminated titania surface. When the density of these groups is too low, like in substoichiometric titania, no corresponding modification occurs. The mechanistic role of the polytriazine component depends on its concentration. If present in only a small amount, it acts as a molecular photosensitizer. At higher amounts it forms a crystalline semiconducting organic layer, chemically bound to titania. In this case the system represents a unique example of a covalently coupled inorganic-organic semiconductor photocatalyst. Both types of material exhibit the quasi-Fermi level of electrons slightly anodically shifted relative to that of titania. They are all active in the visible-light mineralization of formic acid, whereas nitrogen-modified titania prepared from ammonia is inactive.

Highly efficient rutile TiO2 photocatalysts with single Cu(II) and Fe(III) surface catalytic sites

Highly active photocatalysts were obtained by impregnation of nanocrystalline rutile TiO2 powders with small amounts of Cu(II) and Fe(III) ions, resulting in the enhancement of initial rates of photocatalytic degradation of 4-chlorophenol in water by factors of 7 and 4, compared to pristine rutile, respectively. Detailed structural analysis by EPR and X-ray absorption spectroscopy (EXAFS) revealed that Cu(II) and Fe(III) are present as single species on the rutile surface. The mechanism of the photoactivity enhancement was elucidated by a combination of DFT calculations and detailed experimental mechanistic studies including photoluminescence measurements, photocatalytic experiments using scavengers, OH radical detection, and photopotential transient measurements. The results demonstrate that the single Cu(II) and Fe(III) ions act as effective cocatalytic sites, enhancing the charge separation, catalyzing “dark” redox reactions at the interface, thus improving the normally very low quantum yields of UV light-activated TiO2 photocatalysts. The exact mechanism of the photoactivity enhancement differs depending on the nature of the cocatalyst. Cu(II)-decorated samples exhibit fast transfer of photogenerated electrons to Cu(II/I) sites, followed by enhanced catalysis of dioxygen reduction, resulting in improved charge separation and higher photocatalytic degradation rates. At Fe(III)-modified rutile the rate of dioxygen reduction is not improved and the photocatalytic enhancement is attributed to higher production of highly oxidizing hydroxyl radicals produced by alternative oxygen reduction pathways opened by the presence of catalytic Fe(III/II) sites. Importantly, it was demonstrated that excessive heat treatment (at 450 °C) of photocatalysts leads to loss of activity due to migration of Cu(II) and Fe(III) ions from TiO2 surface to the bulk, accompanied by formation of oxygen vacancies. The demonstrated variety of mechanisms of photoactivity enhancement at single site catalyst-modified photocatalysts holds promise for developing further tailored photocatalysts for various applications.

Surface Modified Titania Visible Light Photocatalyst Powders

Titanium dioxide has received great attention both in fundamental and applied photocatalysis due to its low cost, non-toxicity, and stability against photocorrosion [ - ]. Unfortunately it can utilize only the very small UV part (about 3%) of solar light arriving at the earth surface. However, also the visible part (λ > 400 nm) may induce photocatalysis if titania is modified by transition or main group elements. Accordingly, many publications appeared in the last 20 years dealing with the problem of sensitizing titania for visible light photooxidation reactions. This may be achieved by doping, which means substitution of lattice ions, and by surface modification. In many cases authors not clearly differentiate between these two possibilities and so called doped titania quite often is a surface modified material. The latter is easily prepared by heating titania or its precursor compounds like titanium hydroxide in the presence of a modifier at temperatures in the range of 100 – 500 °C. In the following we summarize our work in this field using inorganic and organic sensitizers.

Enabling visible-light water photooxidation by coordinative incorporation of Co(II/III) cocatalytic sites into organic-inorganic hybrids: quantum chemical modeling and photoelectrochemical performance

Coordinative incorporation of Co(II/III) cocatalytic sites into organic–inorganic hybrids of TiO2 and “polyheptazine” (PH, poly(aminoimino)heptazine, melon, or “graphitic carbon nitride”) has been investigated both by quantum chemical calculations and experimental techniques. Specifically, density-functional theory (DFT) calculations (PBE/def2-TZVPP) suggest that Co(II/III) and Zn(II) ions adsorb in nanocavities at the surface of the hybrid PH–TiO2 cluster, a prediction which can be further confirmed experimentally by 15N nuclear magnetic resonance in the case of the Zn complex. The absorption spectra of the complexes were characterized by time-dependent DFT calculations, suggesting a change of color upon Co ion binding which can in fact be observed with the naked eye. Hybrid TiO2–PH photoelectrodes were impregnated with Co(II) ions from aqueous cobalt nitrate solutions. Optical absorption data suggest that Co(II) ions are predominantly present as single ions coordinated within the nitrogen cavities of TiO2–PH, and any undesired blocking of light absorption is negligible. The cobalt-induced cocatalytic sites can efficiently couple to the holes photogenerated by visible light in TiO2–PH, leading to complete oxidation of water to dioxygen. Our results indicate that coordinative incorporation of metal ions into well-designed surface sites in the light absorber is sufficient to drive complex multielectron transformations in artificial photosynthetic systems.