Photocatalytic degradation of methyl orange by nano-TiO2 thin films prepared by RF magnetron sputtering

Nano-TiO2 thin films are deposited by radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering using TiO2 ceramic target and characterized by X-ray diffractometer, atomic force microscope, and ultraviolet-visible spectrophotometer. The photocatalytic activity is evaluated by light-induced degradation of methyl orange solutions (5, 10, and 20 ppm) using a high pressure mercury lamp as the light source. The film is amorphous, and its energy gap is 3.02 eV. The photocatalytic degradation of methyl orange solution is the first-order reaction and the apparent reaction rate constants are 0.00369, 0.0024, and 0.00151 for the methyl orange solution concentrations of 5, 10, and 20 ppm, respectively.