WO3Nanoplates Film: Formation and Photocatalytic Oxidation Studies
High surface area of tungsten oxide (WO3) nanoplates films was prepared via simple electrochemical anodization technique by controlling the fluoride content (NH4F) in electrolyte. The design and development of WO3-based nanostructure assemblies have gained significant interest in order to maximize specific surface area for harvesting more photons to trigger photocatalytic oxidation reaction. This study aims to determine the optimum content of NH4F in forming WO3nanoplates on W film with efficient photocatalytic oxidation reaction for organic dye degradation by utilizing our solar energy. The NH4F was found to influence the chemical dissolution and field-assisted dissolution rates, thus modifying the final morphological of WO3-based nanostructure assemblies film. It was found that 0.7 wt% of NH4F is the minimum amount to grow WO3nanoplates film on W film. The photocatalysis oxidation experimental results showed that WO3nanoplates film exhibited a maximum degradation of methyl orange dye (≈75%) under solar illumination for 5 hours. This behavior was attributed to the better charge carriers transportation and minimizes the recombination losses with specific surface area of nanoplates structure.