In-situ synthesis of phthalocyanines on electrospun TiO nanofiber by solvothermal process for photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue.

Titanium dioxide/phthalocyanine (TiO/Pc), TiO/fluor containing phthalocyanine (TiO/FPc), and TiO/fluor containing cobalt phthalocyanine (TiO/FCoPc) had been successfully fabricated by a simple combination of phthalocyanines obtained by in-situ synthesis on the surface of TiO nanofibers prepared by electrospinning. Scanning electron microscopy micrographs and X-ray diffraction analysis indicated that the phthalocyanines uniformly immobilized on the surface of TiO nanofibers. Photocatalytic activity of TiO, TiO/Pc, TiO/FPc, TiO/FCoPc nanofibers for methylene blue in water was comparatively investigated firstly by ultraviolet-visible absorption measurements with time, and kinetic parameters were calculated. Results indicated that the obtained TiO/Pc, TiO/ FPc and TiO/FCoPc exhibited high photocatalytic activity for the degradation of methylene blue and TiO/FCoPc was found the best. It showed similar or higher activities than related studies and can be suggested as a promising candidate for environmental and energy applications.