Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research, Vol.53, No.42, 16332-16340, 2014
Novel Floating Ag+-Doped TiO2/Polystyrene Photocatalysts for the Treatment of Dye Wastewater
Two different solvent-cast techniques, namely, impregnation and strewing, were used to immobilize silver-ion-doped titanium dioxide particles into and onto a polystyrene matrix. The developed floating photocatalysts were characterized by X-ray diffraction, optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive spectroscopy, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The doped sheets were evaluated for their photocatalytic activity by the photodiscoloration of methylene blue dye in aqueous solutions at its natural pH under both ultraviolet (UV) and solar irradiation employing nonanchored and nonstirred conditions. The maximum color removal efficiency achieved by the doped strewn photocatalyst was about 94% and 83% under UVC (254 nm) light and solar irradiation, respectively. For the doped impregnated photocatalyst, the maximum photodiscoloration observed under UV light and sunlight was around 86% and 68%, respectively. The prepared photocatalysts can be easily recovered, and the photocatalytic activity was found to be sustained after three consecutive runs.