A polymer-Au/TiO2 nano-composite based floating catalyst for photocatalytic dye degradation under natural sunlight

Abstract

Floating catalysts for photocatalytic dye degradation under sunlight is very useful for large-scale real-world application. The strategy of immobilizing semiconductor photo-catalysts to a variety of low-density floating material is demonstrated with the objective of easy recovery, low catalyst loss and long reusability. In this study a polymer-Au/TiO2 (Z@Au/TiO2) floating photo-catalyst was developed using Au/TiO2 as a visible light active photo-catalyst immobilized on Zein based low density polymer material. The synthesized floating catalyst was meticulously characterized by a range of spectroscopic, thermo gravimetric and imaging techniques to confirm its chemical identity and stability. Under either artificial or natural sunlight conditions, a variety of dye molecules (Auramine (Aur), Congo red (CR), Jakazol red (JR), and Methyl violet (MV)) could be degraded through photocatalytic degradation with floating Z@Au/TiO2. Additionally, it was demonstrated that it could be collected easily after the catalysis and can be reused for several cycles. Due to its ease of fabrication and high photocatalytic activity, Z@Au/TiO2 floating photo-catalyst may be helpful in treating water pollution for environmental remediation.