Controllable synthesis and enhanced photocatalytic activity of B-TiO2 nanospheres

A series of boron-doped-titanium dioxide (B-TiO2) nanospheres were synthesised via a mild and facile spray-drying process. The obtained nanospheres were relatively uniform with a size of about 100 nm. A strong absorption in the visible-light range was observed due to the formation of Ti–O–B bonds, by narrowing the bandgap of B-TiO2 from 3.1 to 2.8 eV. The as-synthesised 3 wt% B-TiO2 exhibited the greatest photocatalytic activity in the degradation of p-nitrophenol. The photocatalytic performance was improved, which could be attributed to high absorption of the visible-light region and efficient separation of photogenerated electron–hole pairs.