Enhanced photoelectrocatalytic performance of Ti4O7 ceramic electrodes loaded with PbO2 for wastewater degradation

Photoelectrocatalytic oxidation technology (PEC) is considered to be an efficient process for the treatment of organic wastewater, and its performance depends on the characteristics of the PEC photoanodes. Therefore, the construction of heterogeneous nanostructured photoelectrodes based on suitable semiconductor materials for fast-induced carrier transfer efficiency is essential for the high-performance PEC technique. Herein, the Ti₄O₇/PbO₂ ceramic photoelectrode with efficient PEC performance was synthesized by coupling PbO₂ nanospheres with Ti₄O₇ via a hydrothermal method. To maximize the PEC performance of the ceramic electrodes, the Ti₄O₇/PbO₂ nano-heterostructures were optimized by modulating the hydrothermal temperature. The optimized ceramic electrodes possessed a low Tafel slope, low charge transfer resistance, and good photocurrent response.It exhibited efficient PEC activity (ca. 92.21 %) for the degradation of reactive brilliant blue KN-R. The efficient PEC performance of Ti₄O₇/PbO₂-110 arises from the formation of a type II heterojunction between Ti₄O₇ and PbO₂, which achieves efficient photogenerated carrier separation and facilitates the formation of intermediate active species. This work not only validates the efficient performance of Ti₄O₇/PbO₂-110 for PEC water purification but also provides a reference strategy for the preparation of heterostructured ceramic photoelectrodes with high PEC efficiency.