Enhanced Photocatalytic Activity of TiO2 Supported on Different Carbon Allotropes for Degradation of Pharmaceutical Organic Compounds

Abstract

TiO 2 -carbon composites with different amount of TiO 2 (5%, 10%, 20%, 30% and 50%) supported on different carbon allotropes such as activated charcoal, graphite, and graphene were synthesized by hydrothermal method. The synthesized catalysts were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), ultraviolet-visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (UV-vis DRS), N2 adsorption and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) techniques. XRD result demonstrated that, the loading of TiO 2 has not significantly altered the structure of the support carbon allotropes. However, the bandgap and surface area of the composite was varied with respect to the amount of TiO 2 loading in the composites. The photocatalytic activity of the synthesized TiO 2 -carbon composites was evaluated by photocatalytic degradation of isoniazide in aqueous medium. All the synthesized catalyst were found easy to separate from the reaction mixture. The result demonstrated that the composites synthesized using activated charcoal showed enhanced photocatalytic activity as compared to the other allotropes of carbon. The highest photocatalytic activity was obtained using a composite having 30% TiO 2 supported on activated charcoal.