Functionalization of cotton fibers with hierarchical flower-like Na2Ti3O7/Ag layer

An easy method for the immobilization of flower-like nanostructured Na2Ti3O7 and Na2Ti3O7/Ag layer on cotton fabric by mild alkali hydrothermal processes at 130 °C is reported. The method involves immersion of the Cotton–TiO2 and Cotton–TiO2–AgBr each separately in an aqueous solution of 10 M NaOH followed by mild hydrothermal treatment for the preparation of Cotton–Na2Ti3O7 and Cotton–Na2Ti3O7/Ag, respectively. It is worth noting that Ag NPs were formed on the surface of Na2Ti3O7 as a result of an interaction between AgBr and NaOH during hydrothermal synthesis. Generation of Na2Ti3O7 was confirmed by XRD, Raman and XPS, and the morphology of the appended structure was analyzed by FE-SEM. The photocatalytic activity of the composite material under sunlight stimulant was evaluated with the photodegradation of 4-aminomethyl benzoic acid, salicylic acid and o-toluidine. The composite Na2Ti3O7/Ag exhibited effective photocatalytic activity for the complete degradation and mineralization of organic molecules under visible light. The inclusion of Ag NPs was shown to strongly boost the photocatalytic activity under visible light, driven by the surface Plasmon resonance of Ag NPs.