In this work, we investigate advanced photocatalyst Bi3TiNbO9 as promising piezophotocatalyst
in terms of the effect of synthesis methods on the surface chemistry, structure,
and catalytic performance in process of contaminant removal. Samples were prepared
via solid-state reaction (BTNO-900) and molten salt synthesis (BTNO-800), leading to
distinct morphologies and defect distributions. SEM imaging revealed that BTNO-900
consists of agglomerated, irregular particles, while BTNO-800 exhibits well-faceted,
plate-like grains. Nitrogen adsorption analysis showed that the molten-synthesized
sample possesses a significantly higher specific surface area (5.9 m2/g vs. 1.4 m2/g) and
slightly larger average pore diameter (2.8 nm vs. 2.6 nm). High-resolution XPS revealed
systematic shifts in binding energies for Bi 4f, Ti 2p, Nb 3d, and O 1s peaks in BTNO-900,
accompanied by a higher content of adsorbed oxygen species (57% vs. 7.2%), indicating
an increased concentration of oxygen vacancies and surface hydroxylation due to the
solid-state synthesis route. Catalytic testing demonstrated that BTNO exhibits enhanced
piezocatalytic efficiency of Methylene Blue degradation (~78% for both samples),
whereas BTNO-800 shows significantly reduced photocatalytic activity (45.6%) compared
to BTNO-900 (84.1%), suggesting recombination effects dominate in the more defective
material. Synergism of light and mechanical stress results in piezophotocatalytic
degradation for both samples (92.4% and 93.4%, relatively). These findings confirm that
synthesis-controlled defect engineering is a key parameter for optimizing the photocatalytic
behavior of Bi3TiNbO9-based layered oxides and crucial role of its piezocatalytic activity.