Preparation of Cu2O/TiO2 nanotube heterojunction arrays with enhanced photoelectrocatalysis performance

Highly ordered TiO 2 nanotube arrays (TNAs) were firstly fabricated by two-step anodization process. Then the Cu 2 O nanoparticles were deposited onto the as-fabricated TNAs via potentiostatic electrochemical deposition method in a three-electrode cell (the TNAs, Ag/AgCl and graphite performed as working electrode, reference electrode and counter electrode, respectively). The field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) were adopted for the morphology characterization, the crystalline phases and composition analyzation of the as-prepared Cu 2 O/TNAs heterojunctions, repectively. The photoelectrochemical performance of the Cu 2 O/TNAs samples was evaluated by measuring the enhanced photocurrent response under intermittent Xe lamp irradiation. Then the photocatalytic properties were further investigated based on the photocatalytic degradation of methyl orange (MO) solution under simulated visible light. The results indicated that the inner surface and interface of the TNAs had been successfully modified with uniformly distributed Cu 2 O nanoparticles, which further ameliorated the photoelectrochemical and photocatalytic activities.