Nano Silver-Iron-Reduced Graphene Oxide Modified Titanium Dioxide Photocatalytic Remediation System for Organic Dye

摘要

The organic water contaminant, methyl orange contaminant (M.O), has shown a hazardous increase in our water systems over the past few years due to its increasing demand in industrial processes. The photocatalytic degradation of the commercial dye was studied through the application of modified TiO 2 composite catalysts in aqueous solution under artificial irradiation. The improvement of photocatalytic activity is strongly affected by the various functional groups emerging in the organic substances. In this work, the effect of both silver-iron and silver-iron-reduced graphene oxide-modified titanium dioxide towards M.O remediation as a cost-effective photocatalyst was investigated. We confirmed that the novel AgFe functionalized TiO 2 catalyst (AgFe-TiO 2 ) showed more superior remediation activity than the reduced graphene oxide (rGO)-modified TiO 2 due to the decreased band gap from 3.02 eV–2.5 eV with increased photocatalysis. Based on the spectroscopic and microscopic results, the enhanced photocatalytic degradation of M.O dye was induced by its enhanced surface area, electron diffusion, and the reduction of photo-generated electron-hole pairs’ recombination.