Efficient photodegradation of phenol assisted by persulfate under visible light irradiation via a nitrogen-doped titanium-carbon composite

To realize the utilization of visible light and improve the photocatalytic efficiency of organic pollutant degradation in wastewater, a nitrogen-doped titanium-carbon composite (N-TiO₂/AC) prepared by sol-gel methods was applied in the photodegradation of phenol assisted by persulfate under visible light irradiation (named N-TiO₂/AC/PS/VIS). The results show that a synergistic effect exists between visible-light photocatalysis and persulfate activation. Compared with TiO₂/PS/VIS, the phenol degradation rate was found to be observably improved by 65% in the N-TiO₂/AC/PS/VIS system. This significant increase in degradation rate was mainly attributed to the following two factors: 1) The N and C doping can change the crystal structure of TiO₂, which extends the TiO₂ absorption wavelength range to the visible light region. 2) As an electron acceptor, PS can not only prevent electrons and holes from recombining with each other but can also generate strong oxidizing radicals such as ∙SO₄^– and ∙OH to accelerate the reaction dynamics. The process of phenol degradation was found to be consistent with the Langmuir pseudo-first-order kinetic model with an apparent rate constant k of 1.73 min^–1. The N-TiO₂/AC/PS/VIS process was proven to be a facile method for pollutant degradation with high pH adaptability, excellent visible-light utilization and good application prospects.