TiO2 photocatalyst deposition by MOCVD on activated carbon

Activated carbon modified by HNO₃ was used as the support during the production of TiO₂ by metal organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD). The HNO₃ modification increased mesopores surface area of activated carbon indicating the size of pores increased. The concentration of surface oxygen bearing groups on the HNO₃ modified activated carbon was much higher than that of the original activated carbon. It was found that a modification of activated carbon by 6 mol/L HNO₃ increased the deposition rate of TiO₂ by 4.5 times. The modification of activated carbon by HNO₃ significantly raised the photocatalytic activity of TiO₂ resulting from the formation of smaller-sized TiO₂ particles well dispersed confirmed by the results of XRD patterns and N₂ adsorption-desorption isotherms.     

The performance of activated carbon/NiFe2O4 magnetic composite to retain heavy metal ions from aqueous solution

A novel magnetic activated carbon composite(AC/NiF) was synthesized by a precipitation method and applied in retention of Cu(Ⅱ),and Zn(Ⅱ) ions from aqueous solutions.The impact of different sorption parameters such as:equilibration time,solution pH value,competing cations and ionic strength on the amount sorbed of Cu(Ⅱ),and Zn(Ⅱ) was clarified.Results illustrated that the magnetic composite had retention ability towards both metal ions significantly higher than that of activated carbon(AC).The magnetic composite exhibited an affinity to adsorb Cu(Ⅱ) higher than Zn(Ⅱ) ions.The maximum sorption capacities(Q_(max)) of the applied magnetic composite(AC/NiF)towards Cu(Ⅱ) and Zn(Ⅱ) were 105.8 and 75.1 mg·g~(-1),respectively.Retention of Cu(Ⅱ) and Zn(Ⅱ) was proposed to be achieved though an ion exchange and surface adsorption in neutral conditions,while precipitation was believed to be the relevant mechanism in their removal from basic solutions.The kinetic studies showed that sorption process followed the kinetics of pseudo-second-order reactions with rate constant of 3 × 10~(-3) and 2 × 10~(-3) min~(-1)for sorption of Cu(Ⅱ) and Zn(Ⅱ) onto AC/NiF composite.Removal of Cu(Ⅱ) slightly decreased with increasing the ionic strength of aqueous solution,using NaCl as a background electrolyte.In contrast,presence of Mn(Ⅱ),Mg(Ⅱ)and Co(Ⅱ) in reaction solutions highly depressed the sorption of Cu(Ⅱ) and Zn(Ⅱ) with a competing efficiency followed the order:Mg(Ⅱ) Mn(Ⅱ) Co(Ⅱ).The magnetic composite was rapidly recovered from aqueous solution by an external magnetic field,and effectively regenerated using 0.1 mol L~(-1) HCl and 0.1 mol L~(-1) FeCl_3 as eluents.Sorption of Cu(Ⅱ) and Zn(Ⅱ) onto the surface of AC/NiF composite occurred via a spontaneous reaction.And thermodynamically favorable process had ΔH~o values of 30.9 kJ·mol~(-1) and 19.7 kJ·mol~(-1),respectively.The results confirm that the magnetic composite can be viewed as a promising novel composite opens new opportunities for the attainment of required adsorption and operative magnetic separation.     

活性炭负载TiO2的甲苯光催化降解性能研究

以竹炭活性炭颗粒为载体，采用溶胶-凝胶法制备TiO₂溶胶，以浸渍和微波辐照的方法实现催化剂的固定，高温活化制备了负载型TiO₂光催化剂。采用XRD、FSEM和FT-IR等分析方法对催化剂样品进行了表征。以甲苯为目标污染物，在紫外光照下模拟污染物的吸附与降解情况，探究了甲苯初始浓度和空气流量对光催化降解效果的影响。并通过在紫外光照下通入洁净空气、微波辐照和高温处理三种方法研究了催化剂的再生效果。结果表明，该方法制备的TiO₂为锐钛矿晶型，晶粒大小约为18 nm。甲苯的降解效率最高达到80%，其去除量先随负荷增加而上升，以后随负荷的进一步增加，甲苯的光催化去除量反而下降。微波辐照是实现催化剂再生的最为理想的方法。     

Enhanced performance of g-C3N4/TiO2 photocatalysts for degradation of organic pollutants under visible light☆

Photocatalytic degradation is one of the most promising remediation technologies in terms of advanced oxida-tion processes (AOPs) for water treatment. In this study, novel graphitic carbon nitride/titanium dioxide (g-C3N4/TiO2) composites were synthesized by a facile sonication method. The physicochemical properties of the photocatalyst with different mass ratios of g-C3N4 to TiO2 were investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), N2 sorption, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and UV–vis DRS. The photocatalytic performances were evaluated by degradation of methylene blue. It was found that g-C3N4/TiO2 with a mass ratio of 1.5:1 exhib-ited the best degradation performance. Under UV, the degradation rate of g-C3N4/TiO2 was 6.92 and 2.65 times higher than g-C3N4 and TiO2, respectively. While under visible light, the enhancement factors became 9.27 (to g-C3N4) and 7.03 (to TiO2). The improved photocatalytic activity was ascribed to the interfacial charge transfer between g-C3N4 and TiO2. This work suggests that hybridization can produce promising solar materials for envi-ronmental remediation.     

活性炭纤维负载二氧化钛复合催化剂降解甲基橙性能研究

制备了活性炭纤维负载二氧化钛复合催化剂ACF/TiO2,并在紫外光下降解甲基橙以考察其催化活性。并在同等条件下,对未负载二氧化钛的活性炭纤维空白样品进行了对比实验;同时还考察了ACF/TiO2的循环使用寿命。结果表明,ACF/TiO2降解能力大于未负载的活性炭纤维,其降解能力是吸附性能和光催化性能的协同作用,并拥有较长的循环使用寿命。     

Synthesis of multifunctional photocatalyst vanadium oxide/activated carbon via in situ utilization of stone coal ore

In this work, activated carbon (AC), vanadium oxide (V₂O₅), and V₂O₅/AC photocatalyst were prepared by in situ utilization of stone coal ore for the first time. The synthesis conditions for activated carbon (AC) and V₂O₅/AC were thoroughly investigated via orthogonal experiments and single factor experiments, respectively. The obtained optimal parameters could be directly adopted in practical application about utilization of stone coal ore. The optimal deashing experimental parameters for stone coal ore were: HF concentration of 15%, H₂SO₄ concentration of 15%, acid leaching temperature of 85?°C, and acid leaching time of 2?h. The as-prepared activated carbon from stone coal ore could be applied to the removal of methylene blue. The as-prepared V₂O₅/AC photocatalyst possessed a highly visible-light-driven photocatalytic activity for the removal of Rhodamine B (RhB) dye. The RhB degradation ratio could reach to 90.0% after only 3?h photocatalytic reaction. This photocatalyst would be possibly applied to treatment other organic dye wastewater. Actually, this work would extend the application field of stone coal ore. Most importantly, we hope the proposed new concept that in situ utilization of ore can be widely spread and applied.     

Facile construction of C3N4-TE@TiO2/UiO-66 with double Z-scheme structure as high performance photocatalyst for degradation of tetracycline

In the current research, a double Z-scheme photocatalyst C₃N₄-TE@TiO₂/UiO-66 (CNTU) is fabricated via a two-steps facile solvothermal method from Z-scheme C₃N₄-TE@TiO₂ (CNT). This double Z-scheme photocatalyst reveals greater performance for the removal of tetracycline (TC) than pristine C₃N₄-TE, TiO₂, UiO-66 (U66), and their binary compounds. The optimized composite 35C₃N₄-TE@TiO₂/35UiO-66 (35CNTU), exhibitions photocatalytic performance for antibiotic removal (TC) more than 5,4 and 2 times higher than that pure TiO₂, UiO-66, and C₃N₄-TE, respectively. The physical and chemical features of synthesized samples were described via FTIR, XRD, SEM-EDX, TEM, BET, UV–Vis DRS, and PL. The key parameters on photocatalytic performances of 35CNTU such as pH, the amount of catalyst, and the primary concentration of TC were clari?ed. The advancement of the photocatalytic process for 35CNTU is due to the increase in the surface area and structure of double Z-scheme in this compound, which growths the active sites of the reaction as well as better separation of the photo-induced electron and hole pairs. Furthermore, 35CNTU can be recycled with superior stability for 5 cycles. The photocatalytic removal proficiency of TC over 35CNTU under visible light achieves 96% in 40 min. The findings of this study could inspire various novel plans for fabricating practical double Z-scheme photocatalyst for great performance and extensive useful applications.     

A novel approach for the synthesis of highly active ZnO/TiO2/Ag2O nanocomposite and its photocatalytic applications

The present work is focused on the preparation of hybrid ZnO/TiO₂/Ag₂O nanocomposite for enhanced photocatalytic activity. The resultant samples are characterized by using XRD, SEM, EDX, HR-TEM, UV-DRS, BET and XPS techniques. X-ray diffraction analysis indicates the co-existence of wurtzite, anatase and cubic phases in ZnO/TiO₂/Ag₂O nanocomposite. The band gap energy value of the photocatalyst is 3.39 eV, which has been evidenced from UV–visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy measurements. Photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue dye has been investigated by using UV–visible spectrophotometer. From the result, it has been concluded that ZnO/TiO₂/Ag₂O nanocomposite has proven to be an efficient photocatalyst under UV irradiation when compared to that of mono and binary oxide systems. Further, the possible photodegradation mechanism is proposed to support the enhancement of photocatalytic activity towards degradation of dyes.     

活性炭负载TiO2的制备及其光催化活性研究

采用溶胶-凝胶法制备TiO2/活性炭(AC)光催化剂,采用XRD分析了纳米TiO2晶型,SEM观察了活性炭负载前后表面形貌.正交试验分析了各因素对光催化降解甲基橙的影响.结果表明:制备的纳米TiO2为纯锐钛矿型,催化剂以不规则碎片包覆在活性炭表面.复合材料在TiO2浓度0.441 mol/L,50℃烘干后,pH=3的环境下降解甲基橙,脱色率达到95.5％.溶液pH值是催化降解的主要影响因素.     

Influence of activated carbon upon titania on aqueous photocatalytic consecutive runs of phenol photodegradation

The photocatalytic degradation of phenol was performed at room temperature in aqueous suspended mixtures of TiO₂ and activated carbon (AC). The main objective of the present work was to verify the potential of TiO₂/AC system in the photocatalytic degradation of phenol and the principal intermediate products after performing three consecutive runs. The phenol disappearance follows a first-order kinetics. Therefore, the apparent first-order rate constant of phenol and total organic carbon photodegradations were selected to evaluate the photoefficiency of the system. From the present results it can be concluded that there is a synergistic effect between both solids which is determined by the numbers of photocatalytic runs. From a practical point of view, TiO₂/AC is able to photomineralize phenol and total organic carbon for three and two, respectively, consecutive runs more efficiently than TiO₂ alone.     

Synthesis of hollow TiO2@g-C3N4/Co3O4 core-shell microspheres for effective photooxidation degradation of tetracycline and MO

Traditional bulk photocatalysts often experience serious charge recombination and poor visible-light capturing, resulting in inefficient photocatalytic activity. However, proper nanostructure design usually helps to increase the activity of composite photocatalysts. Here, hollow TiO₂@g-C₃N₄/Co₃O₄ core-shell microspheres are first reported. The hollow structure of the heterostructured will directionally separate the photogenerated carriers, and the photogenerated holes transferred to the surface will be further captured by Co₃O₄ to achieve an exposed oxidized surface. The novel multi-stage hollow microspheres can simultaneously achieve effective transfer of photogenerated carriers and extended light absorption. Benefiting from these structural and compositional characteristics, the optimized TiO₂@g-C₃N₄/Co₃O₄ nanospheres have excellent photodegradation activity for tetracycline and MO. Under simulated sunlight, the degradation rates of TC (10 mg/L) and MO (25 mg/L) at 60 min are 91.6% and 97.8%, respectively. At the same time, high activity is maintained after multiple cycles of testing. Possible transfer paths for photogenerated carriers have also been proposed. This work will provide more inspiration for the design of multi-stage hollow photocatalytic systems.     

Photocatalytic degradation of Chromotrope 2R using nanocrystalline TiO2/activated-carbon composite catalysts

Composite catalysts made of nanocrystalline TiO₂ and carbon were prepared by a modified sol–gel method over activated carbon (AC). The composite catalysts were characterized by N₂ adsorption–desorption isotherm, TG, diffuse reflectance UV–vis spectroscopy, XRD and SEM. The photocatalytic activity was tested on the degradation of Chromotrope 2R (C2R) in aqueous medium under UV radiation. The composite catalysts exhibited higher activities than commercial Degussa P25 alone and the photocatalytic process was more efficient than the pure photolytic degradation. A modified Langmuir–Hinshelwood approach was used to study the kinetics and to determine the adsorption equilibrium constant and the reaction rate constant. Two different mechanisms are proposed and discussed in order to explain the observed synergy.     

Fabrication of titanium doped BiVO4 as a novel visible light driven photocatalyst for degradation of residual tetracycline pollutant

In this study, titanium (Ti) was used as an active dopant to incorporate into BiVO₄ lattice using the hydrothermal method. The synthesized BiVO₄ and Ti–BiVO₄ with 1, 5 and 10 wt% of Ti dopants have been applied for photocatalytic decomposition of Tetracycline under visible light irradiation. The characterized results showed that this synthesized BiVO₄ and Ti–BiVO₄ materials existed in a form of spherical particles. The particle sizes of the Ti–BiVO₄ were much bigger than that of the BiVO₄. However, Ti dopants effectively enhanced visible light absorption, decreased band gap energy as well as prevented electron-hole recombination of the BiVO₄ leading to increase in photocatalytic activities of the doped materials. The obtained results from photocatalytic experiments indicated that the 5Ti–BiVO₄, whose weight ratio of Ti was 5%, was the best material for TC degradation (78.49%). Recycling tests were consecutively carried out in 4 runs to demonstrate the stability of the BiVO₄ photocatalyst with 5 wt% of Ti dopant.     

TiO2/AC复合材料的制备及其对孔雀石绿的光催化降解

以活性炭为载体,用溶胶-凝胶法制备了不同TiO2负载量的TiO2/AC复合光催化剂,运用X射线衍射仪(XRD)、扫描电子显微镜(SEM)和红外光谱仪(FT-IR)对该催化剂进行表征.探讨了TiO2的负载量、光催化剂质量浓度、溶液的初始质量浓度等因素对孔雀石绿降解效率的影响,并对催化剂进行了回收再生实验.结果表明,TiO2负载量为30％时的复合催化剂为锐钛矿相,对孔雀石绿的降解具有良好的光催化活性,且回收7次重复使用降解效果仍在95％以上.     

Preparation of microporous activated carbon and its modification for arsenic removal from water

Arsenic removal from water was investigated using activated carbon. The chemical activated carbon (CAC) prepared using H₃PO₄ from jute stick largely featured micropore structure with surface functional groups, while meso- and macropore structures were mainly developed in physical activated carbon (PAC). The CAC and PAC reduced arsenic concentration to 45 and 55 μg L⁻¹, respectively, from 100 μg L⁻¹ while iron-loaded CAC reduced to 3 μg L⁻¹, which is lower than the upper permissible limit (10 μg L⁻¹). The micropore structure of CAC along with complexation affinity of iron species towards arsenic species attributed to enhanced separation of arsenic.     

The synthesis of biotemplate-based Bi2WO6/TiO2 composite photocatalyst for degradation of microcystin

Microcystin is a harmful hepatic toxin produced by cyanobacteria, is a serious threat due to its toxicity to water ecosystems, and it is found recently that TiO₂ photocatalyst is effective in degradation of microcystin. In this study, hierarchical porous Bi₂WO₆/ TiO₂ composite photocatalysts were synthesized with a novel hydrothermal method by using rice husk as the biological template. The results showed that the original micro- and nanopores of rice husk were efficiently replicated by the synthesized porous TiO₂ photocatalyst with a specific surface area of 137.09 m²/g, which increased by nearly 100 m²/g over the surface area. SEM, TEM, XRD, and XPS spectra showed that heterogeneous structures were formed by Bi₂WO₆ and TiO₂, with which process the crystal structures of both were not affected. In the meantime, we studied the effect of hierarchical porous TiO₂ photo-catalyst, pure TiO₂ photo-catalyst, Bi₂WO₆ photo-catalyst, Bi₂WO₆/ hierarchical porous TiO₂ photo-catalyst on degradation of 1 mg/L MC-LR, and the results showed that to use the unique silicon-carbon structure of rice husk to prepare hierarchical porous TiO₂ photo-catalyst can have the degradation rate of 53.5%, which is higher than that of commercially available TiO₂ photo-catalyst by 13.8%. Compared with a single photo-catalyst, the photo-catalytic activity of Bi₂WO₆/ hierarchical porous TiO₂ photo-catalyst is significantly improved. The optimal mingling amount of Bi₂WO₆ is 0.2 mol/mol. At this time, the degradation rate of MC-LR is 85.3%, and the main active substances for degradation are h+ and ·OH. In addition, the degradation process of MC-LR fit well with the kinetic model of Quasi Primary Reaction. The insight of green synthesis of Bi₂WO₆/ TiO₂ composite photocatalysts for degradation of microcystins was provided by this study.     

In vitro adsorption study of fluoxetine in activated carbons and activated carbon fibres

We study the in vitro adsorption of fluoxetine hydrochloride by different adsorbents in simulated gastric and intestinal fluid, pH 1.2 and 7.5, respectively. The tested materials were two commercial activated carbons, carbomix and maxsorb MSC30, one activated carbon fibre produced in our laboratory and also three MCM-41 samples, also produced by us. Selected samples were modified by liquid phase oxidation and thermal treatment in order to change the surface chemistry without significant modifications to the porous characteristics. The fluoxetine adsorption follows the Langmuir model. The calculated Q₀ values range from 54 to 1112 mg/g. A different adsorption mechanism was found for the adsorption of fluoxetine in activated carbon fibres and activated carbons. In the first case the most relevant factors are the molecular sieving effect and the dispersive interactions whereas in the activated carbons the mechanism seams to be based on the electrostatic interactions between the fluoxetine molecules and the charged carbon surface. Despite the different behaviours most of the materials tested have potential for treating potential fluoxetine intoxications.     

Preparation,modification and industrial application of activated carbon from almond shell

Almond shell was used to prepare activated carbon using physical activation method, consisted of carbon dioxide (CO₂) gasification. The effects of the preparation variables which were activation temperature, activation time and carbon dioxide flow rate on the adsorption capacity of iodine and methylene blue solution were investigated. The optimal activated carbon was obtained by these conditions as follows: 800 °C activation temperature, 100 cm³/min carbon dioxide flow rate and 120 min activation time. The characterization of carbon materials is performed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), ¹³C (CP/MAS and MAS) solid-state NMR, nitrogen adsorption (BET) and Boehm's titration method. For an industrial application, the optimal activated carbon was ammoxidated to improve its adsorption capacity toward total organic carbon from Tunisian industrial phosphoric acid. The influence of experimental parameters such as specific consumption, initial concentration, contact time, agitation speed and temperature on TOC removal was studied.     

Synergy effect on a suspended mixture of ceria and activated carbon for the photocatalytic degradation of phenol

Ceria, prepared by a precipitation method, was used as a new photocatalyst under UV light irradiation. The as-prepared sample was characterized by XRD and SEM. Results showed that the ceria was cubic fluorite structure and sized in nanometer range. The photocatalytic degradation of phenol was investigated in the presence of a suspended mixture of ceria and activated carbon. A synergy effect was observed with an enhancement of the apparent rate constant by a factor of 5.6 times. The apparent quantum yield of the ceria-AC system was also increased 2.9 times. The activated carbon with strong adsorption activity provided sites for the adsorption of phenol. Then, the adsorbed phenol would migrate continuously to the surface of ceria particles. Some phenol still remained adsorbing on the catalyst when no traces of phenol were detected in the solution. This adsorbed phenol could be degraded by maintaining UV-irradiation.