Abstract
Rice husk (RH) is a valuable and renewable source of bioenergy. Once RH has been burned to produce thermal energy, RH ash (RHA) remains, and this ash can be used as a sustainable resource to improve the circular economy. In this study, we used RHA as a silicon source to fabricate RH-SBA-15. Incipient wetness impregnation was then employed to directly incorporate TiO2 nanocrystals into the mesopores of the RH-SBA-15. XRD and TEM confirmed the successful integration of TiO2 into the framework of RH-SBA-15, with the hexagonal array and ordered mesostructure of RH-SBA-15 being unchanged. FTIR and XPS revealed the formation of Ti–O–Si bonds on the surface of RH-SBA-15, which enhanced the activity of TiO2. The pore volume and surface area of TiO2/RH-SBA-15 were 0.292–0.604 cm3/g and 170–366 m2/g. Photocatalytic tests were conducted to examine the catalysts used in the degradation of Reactive Blue 4 (RB4). The results indicated that TiO2/RH-SBA-15 exhibited 63% higher catalytic efficiency than that did bare TiO2. The surface adsorption of RH-SBA-15 and the high photolytic activity of TiO2 resulted in an improvement in RB4 degradation. The photoactivity increased with decreasing solution pH and calcination temperature and increasing catalyst mass. A TiO2 ratio of 25% resulted in the highest photoactivity, yielding a composite that completely eliminated RB4 within 5 h. The catalyst composites had high stability and photoactivity after four cycles. Overall, the method used in this study for fabricating mesoporous photocatalysts from recycled RHA is valuable for bio-waste disposal and wastewater purification.
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