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Facile synthesis of TiO2/microcrystalline cellulose nanocomposites: photocatalytically active material under visible light irradiation
Citation:
VARMA, R. S. Facile synthesis of TiO2/microcrystalline cellulose nanocomposites: photocatalytically active material under visible light irradiation. Presented at the CESE 2011 International Conference - Challenges in Environmental Science & Engineering, Tainan City, TAIWAN, September 25 - 30, 2011.
Impact/Purpose:
To inform public
Description:
Doped TiO2 nanocomposites were prepared in situ by a facile and simple synthesis utilizing benign and renewable precursors such as microcrystalline cellulose (MC) and TiCl4 through hydrolysis in alkaline medium without the addition of organic solvents. The as-prepared nanocomposite was characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Brunauer, Emmett and Teller (BET) surface area analyzer, UV-vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (UV-vis DRS) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). Surface morphology was assessed by the means of scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM). Statistics-based factorial design (FD) was adopted to investigate the effect of precursors concentrations and therefore to optimize the nanocomposite synthesis through catalytic adsorption of methylene blue (MB) from aqueous solutions. The results showed that TiO2/MC nanocomposites were photocatalytically active in destroying 40 - 90 % of methylene blue (MB) in 4 hours.