Phenol decomposition under sunlight using a sonochemically synthesized CdSe/TiO2 nanocatalyst

• Published in: Reaction kinetics, mechanisms and catalysis mechanisms and catalysis, 2011-10, Vol.104 (1), p.49-60
• Main Authors: Ghodrati, Mohammad Saleh, Haghighi, Mohammad, Soltan Mohamdzadeh, Jafar Sadegh, Pourabas, Behzad, Pipelzadeh, Ehsan
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Catalysis; Chemistry; Chemistry and Materials Science; Industrial Chemistry/Chemical Engineering; Physical Chemistry
• ISSN: 1878-5190; 1878-5204
• DOI: 10.1007/s11144-011-0338-8

Ultrasound energy has been successfully employed to synthesize CdSe/TiO 2 nanocatalysts for the photocatalytic degradation of phenol under solar light irradiation. The photocatalytic performance test was carried out using TiO 2 as well as synthesized CdSe/TiO 2 nanocatalysts. Nanocatalyst characterization was accomplished using XRD, SEM, FTIR, BET and UV–vis spectroscopy. It was shown that the synthesized nanocatalysts have crystal characteristics and are in nano-scale size range. The coupled nanocatalyst has shown a shift in the absorption spectrum from the UV range to the visible range. The results of photocatalytic tests showed that the CdSe/TiO 2 coupled nanocatalyst could remove phenol from wastewater under solar light irradiation, while TiO 2 did not have enough activity in this process. It is also shown that the CdSe nanoparticles act as photosensitizers, not only extending the spectral response of TiO 2 to the visible region but also reducing the electron–hole recombination. Furthermore, the CdSe/TiO 2 synthesized samples provided more photomineralization efficiency than that of TiO 2 in terms of total organic carbon analysis.