Detailed Study on Rapid Removal of Cationic Dyes Using TiO₂-Poly(3-Chloro-2-Hydroxypropyl Methacrylate) Nanocomposite

Abstract

This study focused on TiO2-poly(3-chloro-2-hydroxypropyl methacrylate) (TiO2-PCHPMA) for rapid removal of cationic dyes from aqueous solutions by adsorption and degradation. TiO2-PCHPMA adsorbed cationic dyes, basic red 2 (BR2), basic red 5 (BR5), basic blue 17 (BB17), and methylene blue (MB), quantitatively in a wide range of pH from 5 to 10. The adsorption proceeded very rapidly, and reached equilibrium in a few seconds. TiO2-PCHPMA selectively separated cationic MB from a mixture with anionic methyl orange by the selective adsorption ability. The photocatalytic activity of TiO2-PCHPMA under UV irradiation was higher than that of bare TiO2. The excellent removal efficiency of TiO2-PCHPMA either by adsorption or degradation is advantageous in applications for treatment of industrial effluents by the selective separation by adsorption and degradation under UV irradiation.