Synthesis of CdS/m-TiO2 mesoporous spheres and their application in photocatalytic degradation of rhodamine B under visible light

CdS/m-TiO2 heteroarchitecture with CdS nanocrystals loaded on mesoporous TiO2(m-TiO2) spheres was successfully synthesized via sol-gel method followed by solvothermal treatment. The material with uniform diameter of ca. 750 nm possesses regular mesoporous structure and large specific surface area of 100.5 m2/g. When used to photodegradate Rhodamine B(RB) under visible light, the CdS/m-TiO2 heteroarchitecture exhibits improved photocatalytic performance in comparison with pure m-TiO2 or CdS. The excellent photocatalytic activity is closely related to the facilitated separation of electron-hole pairs derived from the CdS/m-TiO2 heterojunction and mesoporous structure with high specific surface area and adequately exposed active sites.