Degradation of Methyl Orange in Aqueous Solution via Magnetic TiO.sub.2/Fe.sub.3O.sub.4 Conjugated with Persulfate

• Published in: Water, air, and soil pollution air, and soil pollution, 2023-01, Vol.234 (1)
• Main Authors: Song, Tiehong, Gao, Yanjiao, Hu, Ruihua, Li, Guanqiao, Yu, Xiaodan
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Azo compounds; Catalysis; Methylene blue
• ISSN: 0049-6979
• DOI: 10.1007/s11270-022-05982-2

The magnetic nanocomposite TiO.sub.2/Fe.sub.3O.sub.4 coupled with persulfate (PS) under UV irradiation for methyl orange (MO) degradation in aqueous solution was investigated in this study. The features of TiO.sub.2/Fe.sub.3O.sub.4 were characterized via SEM, XPS, UV-Vis, and MPMS. The effect of several operating parameters including PS concentration, TiO.sub.2/Fe.sub.3O.sub.4 dosage, MO concentration, and pH was assessed in UV/TiO.sub.2/Fe.sub.3O.sub.4/PS system. The removal of MO via UV/TiO.sub.2/Fe.sub.3O.sub.4/PS reached 99.5% under the following conditions: [PS] = 60 mM; [TiO.sub.2/Fe.sub.3O.sub.4] = 0.4 g/L; [MO] = 20 mg/L; pH = 3.0; T = 25 â; UV = 300 W; and t = 150 min. In addition, possible mechanisms of TiO.sub.2/Fe.sub.3O.sub.4 photocatalysis, PS activation, and MO degradation were analyzed. Moreover, TiO.sub.2/Fe.sub.3O.sub.4 was easily separated from the reacted solution by magnets and had relatively stable recycling performance. Overall, the application of UV/TiO.sub.2/Fe.sub.3O.sub.4/PS can be introduced as an effective method for MO and even dyes removal.