Photocatalytic Activity of a Silver Doped Tio2 Modified Zeolite in the Degradation of Reactive Yellow 125 Azo Dye

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate photocatalytic activity of a silver doped TiO 2 modified zeolite (Z-TiO 2 -Ag) in the photocatalytic degradation of Reactive Yellow 125 (RY 125) azo dye. The operational conditions using photocatalyst dose of 1g·L -1 at pH 6 were established as optimal conditions for photocatalysis application in RY 125 dye solution degradation. The photocatalyst exhibited a good performance for discoloration at all studied concentrations (25, 50 and 100 mgL -1 ). A good efficiency regarding the aromatic ring-opening process was achieved especially at low concentrations of the dye. However, an effective mineralization did not occur even at low concentrations of dye (25 mgL -1 ). The results of photocatalyst activity under VIS irradiation revealed a practical utility of the silver doped TiO 2 modified zeolite for the RY 125 dye degradation at low concentrations.