Controlled synthesis and wastewater treatment of Ag2O/TiO2 modified chitosan-based photocatalytic film

A novel Ag2O/TiO2-modified chitosan-based photocatalytic film with high adsorption and photocatalytic activity was synthesized under simulated solar irradiation, based upon the coupling of the synergistic catalytic technique of nano Ag2O/TiO2 and membrane separation. XRD, XPS, FESEM, and TEM characterization results illustrated that the Ag2O nanoparticles with a small size of 3-5 nm deposited on the surface of TiO2. Subsequently, Ag2O-TiO2 nanoheterojunctions, as whole graft-structures, were coated on a chitosan-based polypropylene film. The as-synthesized photocatalytic film with a wide visible-light adsorption band and lower band gap of 2.4 eV enhanced the degradation ability for both ampicillin and methyl orange owing to the synergistic effect of AgO2/TiO2 nanoheterojunctions. Moreover, the photocatalytic film displayed excellent recycling properties for the degradation of methyl orange by being reused for 5 times without losing its photocatalytic activity.