Superior photocatalytic activities of p-CdTe QDs/n-NiTiO3 NFs system for the treatment of hazardous dye industrial effluents

Photocatalytic degradation of organic pollutants in water has received much attention in solving the environmental pollution. For the purpose of efficient electron−hole separation and enhancement of photocatalytic performance in the visible region, we have decorated p-type cadmium telluride quantum dots (CdTe QDs) on n-type nickel titanate nanofibers (NiTiO 3 NFs), forming a p-n heterojunction to degrade the organic pollutants. From the results obtained, it was observed that inclusion of CdTe QDs enhanced the spectral coverage of NiTiO 3 NFs. The charge transport phenomena and the photo response characteristics in respect of all the samples were determined using photoelectrochemical (PEC) measurements. It is worth to note that an optimal amount of 3% QDs in NFs degraded about 95% of the methylene blue dye when illuminated with visible light. In addition, the degradation rate for sample containing 3% QDs was found to get doubled when compared to bare NiTiO 3 . Similar outcomes were also observed when testing these samples under natural sunlight. • Novel p-CdTe QDs/n-NiTiO 3 NFs based heterojunction was formed. • Decorating NiTiO 3 NFs with CdTe QDs exhibited spectral coverage from UV-to-Visible region. • PEC studies revealed significant photo response as well as charge transport phenomena under illumination. • Effect of CdTe QDs resulted in effective degradation of MB dye under natural sunlight.