Industrial application of photocatalysts prepared by hydrothermal and sol-gel methods

TiO2-containing almond shell activated carbons (TiO2/ASAC) with high photocatalytic activity were prepared using hydrothermal and sol-gel methods. The prepared photocatalysts were characterized by different techniques. XRD study confirmed that TiO2 existed in a mixture of anatase and rutile phase. Nano-TiO2 particles were dispersed on the ASAC with the size of 18-24 nm. The specific surface area of the samples decreased from 1398 m(2)/g to 661 m(2)/g indicating that the pores of activated carbon are blocked by TiO2. The photocatalyst obtained from the hydrothermal process is better than the other samples one in a comparison of the anatase content, and was also confirmed by the photocatalytic degradation of Total Organic Carbon (TOC) from industrial phosphoric acid solution under UV irradiation. (C) 2014 The Korean Society of Industrial and Engineering Chemistry. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.