Fabrication of platinum nano-crystallites decorated TiO2 nano-tube array photoelectrode and its enhanced photoelectrocatlytic performance for degradation of aspirin and mechanism

Abstract In this study, Pt NCs/TiO 2 NTAs photoelectrode was fabricated through anodization process, followed by recycle pulse electrodeposition strategy. Subsequently, physicochemical properties of the resulting samples were studied systematically. Results indicated that Pt NCs/TiO 2 NTAs photoelectrode exhibited intense light absorbance both in the UV and visible region, high transient photocurrent density of 0.089 mA cm −2 and open circuit potential of −0.275 V cm −2 . In addition, 98.3% of aspirin could be eliminated within 4 h Xenon illumination with the help of +0.4 V potential. Furthermore, it can be concluded that two tentative pathways for PEC degradation of aspirin were proposed and confirmed.