Abstract

TiO2 nanoparticles were prepared by the sol–gel method using sodium dodecyl sulfonate, triton, tetrabutyl ammonium bromide surfactants and tested for the removal of Orange 2G dye from aqueous under UV light. The synthesized photocatalysts were characterized by XRD, FTIR, TEM, and BET measurements. The XRD patterns indicated that the crystalline phase of TiO2 is mainly anatase with crystallite sizes of 17.7-12.6 nm. BET measurements revealed that the surface area of TiO2 in the range of 293.62- 83.49 m2/g. The obtained results showed that the TiO2 nanoparticles prepared with the use of tetrabutyl ammonium bromide (TTAB) had a higher photocatalytic activity. The results indicated that the TTAB can remove 98% of the dye under optimum operational conditions of a dosage of 4 g/L, pH= 3 and a contact irradiation time of 28 hrs for initial dye concentrations of 1.5 x 10-5 mol/L.

Keywords: TiO2 nanocrystalline, Surfactants, Orange 2G, Photocatalytic degradation.