Enhanced visible light photocatalytic degradation of methylene blueby F-doped TiO ₂

F-doped TiO ₂ (F-TiO ₂ ) were successfully synthesized using a modified sol-gel method. The morphologies,structures, and photocatalytic performance in the degradation of methylene blue (MB) were characterizedby scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, UV-vis absorptionspectroscopy, and electrochemical impedance spectra, respectively. The results show that F-TiO ₂ exhibitsan enhanced photocatalytic performance in the degradation of MB with a maximum degradation rate of91% under visible light irradiation as compared with pure TiO ₂ (32%). The excellent photocatalytic activityis due to the contribution from the increased visible light absorption, promoted separation of photo-generated electrons and holes as well as enhanced photocatalytic oxidizing species with the doping of Fin TiO ₂ .