Potato peel carbon dots produced via fixed bed pyrolysis reactor decorated 1-D TiO2 nanorods for rapid removal of methylene blue, Cr (VI), Escherichia coli, and Aspergillus niger

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In this work, new type carbon quantum dots produced from waste of biomass were used as a dopant molecule in order to investigated photocatalytic properties of TiO2 nanorods structures. Low-cost and eco-friendly carbon quantum dots (CQDs) were obtained via slow pyrolysis of potato peels (PP) as a biomass waste without any chemicals by fixed bed pyrolysis. Potato peel quantum dots (P-CQDs) decorated TiO2 nanorods (P-CQDs/TNRs) were synthesized were by utilizing their high specific surface area, good dispersion, abundant surface functional groups. (P-CQDs) were imposed on the surface of the one-dimensional TiO2 nanorods fabricated via chemical impregnation method for P-CQDs/TiO2 nanorods (P-CQDs/TNRs) that TiO2 nanorods have been fabricated by hydrothermal route. Characteristic properties of as-prepared P-CQDs/TNRs photocatalysts were characterized employing TGA, XRD, XPS, FE-SEM/EDS, HRTEM, FTIR, fluorescence and UV–vis spectroscopy, resp. The photocatalytic activity of as-prepared P-CQDs/TNRs were investigated for methylene blue, hexavalent chromium, Escherichia coli and Aspergillus niger under UV-A. The obtained results suggest that the photocatalytic activity of P-CQDs/TNRs composites was slightly enhanced as compared to that of TNRs. The scenario behind the superior photocatalytic activity of P-CQDs/TNRs may be having a synergetic effect between P-CQDs molecules and the surface of TNRs, and also the design of the charge-transfer channel of TNRs. Moreover, the carbon derived from a natural green source possesses the various functional groups such as CC, C-OH, C-O-C, CO, and when these functional groups deposited to the surface of the TiO2 nanorods, newly formed nanocomposites can improve the visible light-driven photocatalytic activity.