Decolorisation of methylene blue over titania-based catalysts: The influence of different pH values used in the catalyst preparation procedure

Abstract

In this study, nano-sized TiO 2-based powders were synthesized by a modified solgel method. The influence of pH values of the precursor solution during the synthesis process on textural, structural and morphological properties of the titania-based catalysts was investigated. Photocatalytic activity of the prepared titania samples was tested by decolorisation/degradation of Methylene blue (MB) as a model pollutant under UV-A illumination. Finally, in order to optimize the photocatalytic process, the influence of the initial MB dye concentrations was also observed with the use of the catalyst sample synthesized at pH 10. The obtained results indicated a greater effect of the dye decolorisation when the catalyst prepared at pH 10 was used, compared with the catalyst prepared at pH 13. The photocatalytic activity was correlated with physico-chemical properties of the synthesized materials. .