Highly active brookite TiO₂-assisted photocatalytic degradation of dyes under the simulated solar−UVA radiation

Highlights

• Highly crystalline brookite nanoparticles were synthesized by hydrothermal method.

• Brookite is highly active under low power UV–vis irradiation and high dye loading.

• Decolourization of dyes is compared to abatement of aromatic ring and mineralization.

Abstract

Brookite TiO₂ nanoparticles were synthesized by hydrothermal method and characterized by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), diffuse reflectance UV–Visible spectroscopy (DRUV), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The obtained particles were spherical in shape with the diameter of about ~10 nm under the hydrothermal temperature of 175 °C. The photocatalytic performance of brookite was investigated in the photodegradation of dyes (rhodamine B and rose bengal) under UV-A radiation by low-power lamp. The activity of brookite and the photodegradation efficiency of dyes were estimated using a UV–Visible spectrophotometer and a total organic carbon (TOC) analyzer. Compared to anatase and rutile prepared by the similar synthesis procedure, brookite is highly active in terms of decolourization, aromatic ring opening, and mineralization.