In this study, a novel photocatalyst based on TiO2 nanoparticles was synthesized by using a waste material (BEW) without any reducing agent and the photocatalyst (TiO2-BEW) was used for investigating photodegradation of atrazine. The transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and X-ray diffraction patterns (XRD) showed the formation of TiO2 nanoparticles on BEW. The BET surface area increased after intercalation of TiO2 nanoparticles into BEW. In photocatalytic degradation studies, the effect of operating variables such as initial atrazine concentration, catalyst dosage and contact time was also investigated. The photocatalysis kinetic studies showed that the removal of atrazine followed a pseudo-first-order reaction kinetic. The photocatalyst was synthesized as a simple, fast, clean, highly efficient and eco-friendly. The photocatalysis experiments show that TiO2-BEW can be used as novel photocatalyst in terms of stable, good efficiency, good reusability and lower cost. The photodegradation of atrazine by using TiO2-BEW is demonstrated as a more effective technique for the pesticide removal from aqueous solution. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.