The influence of Pt features, such as particle size, dispersion, oxidation state and amount of metal, on the improvement of the photoactivity of TiO2 for phenol and methyl orange degradation was studied.

The size of Pt deposits was precisely controlled by changing deposition time under medium light intensity during the photodeposition, with sizes ranging from 3 to 6 nm. Pt oxidation state was also strongly dependent on the photodeposition time.

Photocatalytic activity results showed that the fraction of metallic platinum (Pt0) was the crucial factor for the improvement of the activity. When the fraction of Pt0 was similar, metal deposit size became the dominant parameter influencing the activity.

The influence of the substrate to be degraded (phenol or methyl orange) was also studied.