The Preparation of Ternary Nanocomposite TiO2/ZrO2/SnO2 by Double Template and Application for Water Purification

TiO2/ZrO2/SnO2 nanocomposite with large pore is prepared by sol-gel method with Pluronic P123 and Macrogol 20000 as double template. The structure and physicochemical property of the composite are characterized by small-angle powder X-ray diffraction (SAXS), wide-angle powder X-ray diffraction (WA-XRD) and N-2 adsorption-desorption. The photocatalytic efficiencies of the product are assessed by monitoring the photodegradation of Rhodamine B (RhB). The results show that the doping of SnO2 retard the crystal phase transformation from anatase-TiO2 to rutile-TiO2; the doping of ZrO2 stabilizes the anatase phase, and the phase transformation can be greatly retarded; the materials have relatively regular pores and high specific surface area; two types of pores attributed to the usage of double template; the presence of SnO2 significantly increase the degradation rate; the materials can be used five times without decreasing their photocatalytic capacities significantly.