Photocatalytic degradation of a cationic azo dye by TiO 2/bentonite nanocomposite

Abstract

Titanium dioxide/bentonite clay nanocomposite prepared by acid-catalyzed sol–gel method was used as photocatalyst in the reaction of cationic azo dye decomposition in water. The incorporation of TiO 2 was confirmed by powder X-ray diffraction (XRD) and X-ray photoelectron spectrometer (XPS). The photocatalytic activity of those nanocomposite photocatalysts was much higher than that of the pure titanium dioxides. The nanocomposite created a kinetic synergy effect in Cationic Red GTL (GTL) disappearance with an increase of the rate constant by a factor of 2.57 for neat TiO 2 (P-25). The photo-activities were greatly dependent on the solution pH, and it was more effective for GTL to be degraded under alkaline condition. That was likely to contribute for the acid–base equilibria on the surface of the nanocomposite. Results also indicated that the proper addition of hydrogen peroxide could improve the decolorization rate, but the excess hydrogen peroxide could quench the formation of OH.