Nano structured bismuth and nitrogen co-doped TiO2 as an efficient light harvesting photocatalyst under natural sunlight for the production of H2 by H2O splitting

Abstract The bismuth (Bi) and nitrogen (N) co-doped TiO 2 photocatalysts prepared by sol–gel method were subjected to water splitting under natural solar light irradiation. Doping of nitrogen in TiO 2 lattice was occurred only in the presence of Bi. X-ray photo electronic spectra (XPS) revealed the presence of Bi and N on the surface and the Fourier transformed infrared (FT-IR) spectra emphasized that doping of N occurred in the form of both NO x− and NH species. These species were also characterized by EPR and Raman spectroscopy in the TiO 2 lattice. A high rate of H 2 O splitting activity over 2 wt%Bi doped N-TiO 2 photocatalyst was manifested by high ratio of NO x− species in the TiO 2 lattice.