Liquid impregnation and sol-gel routes synthesis of tailored titania NPs for the effective water remediation processes

Abstract

This work is designed for the synthesis of TiO2 and Fe doped TiO2 nanoparticles (NPs) using sol-gel (SG) and liquid impregnation (LI) methods. The comparison of physicochemical characters, the photocatalytic potential of pure and doped NPs, and cost analysis of the techniques were evaluated. The prepared NPs were characterized through XRD, BET/BJH, SEM, UV-Vis DRS, and pH of the point of zero charges (pH PZC ) analyses. The results have shown the dominant anatase phase of highly pure crystalline NPs. The SG prepared pure and Fe doped TiO2 NPs revealed with high surface area (242 and 245 m2/g, respectively) as compared to the materials prepared via LI technique (57.5 and 82 m2/g, respectively). The photocatalytic potential of the prepared NPs was tested for cationic dye (Methylene Blue) and anionic dye (Methyl Orange) under ordinary visible light (Compact Fluorescent Light). The green route synthesis i.e. LI doped NPs, revealed high photo-degradation efficiencies for Methylene Blue and Methyl Orange (87 and 84%) compared to SG prepared doped NPs (76 and 70%), respectively.