Photoelectrochemical and Photocatalytic Properties of NiFe2O4/TiO2 Nanorod Arrays

Highly ordered one-dimensional TiO2 nanorod arrays (TiO2 NRAs) film was prepared by hydrothermal method. Then through dipping deposition and calcination, the NiFe2O4 modified TiO2 NRAs (NiFe2O4/TiO2 NRAs) was obtained. To analyze the phase and morphology structure of the NiFe2O4/TiO2 NRAs, SEM, TEM, XRD, Raman spectra, XPS, and UV-Vis spectrophotoeter were used. The results showed that NiFe2O4 nanoparticles were uniformly deposited on the surface of rutile TiO2 NRAs, which led to a red shift in absorption spectrum. Considering the photoelectric conversion performance, it is discovered that photocurrent of NiFe2O4/TiO2 was greatly improved compared with that of bare TiO2 under visible light irradiation. The photocurrent density of NiFe2O4/TiO2 NRAs was 12 times that of bare TiO2 NRAs in the voltage-current curve, and 8 times that of bare TiO2 NRAs in the current changes with time switch light. Under visible light irradiation, degradation rate of UDMH by NiFe2O4/TiO2 NRAs was about 3 times as much as that of bare TiO2 NRAs. Furthermore, schematic of photocatalytic activity under visible light was explored.