COMPARATIVE PHOTOCATALYTIC PERFORMANCES OF UNDOPED/N-DOPED TIO2 UNDER SOLAR IRRADIATION FOR A REACTIVE YELLOW 125 AZO REACTIVE DYE DEGRADATION FROM WATER
Abstract
In this study, the comparative photocatalytic activities of undoped and N-doped TiO2 anatase nanocrystals towards the
degradation of Reactive Yellow 125 (RY125) azo reactive dye in aqueous solutions under UV and VIS irradiation ranges were
investigated. Both nanocrystals prepared by a fast-hydrothermal method using titanium isopropoxide as precursor were
characterized morpho-structurally by X-ray diffraction, SEM/EDX analysis and BET measurements. Also, optical features of the
nanocrystals were studied by diffuse reflectance UV-VIS spectroscopy (DRUV-VIS) technique. N-doped TiO2 catalyst exhibited
better adsorption capacity for RY 125 azo dye, adsorption stage being a necessary condition in photocatalysis process. Both
catalysts exhibited very good efficiencies for RY 125 azo dye degradation under UV irradiation. Under VIS irradiation range, Ndoped
TiO2 catalyst allowed reaching good efficiency for RY125 dye degradation, in comparison with undoped TiO2, for which
the results were not satisfactory.