Synthesis, characterization and photocatalytic activity using SiO2-TiO2 nanocomposites under UV light

Abstract

Abstract SiO2-TiO2 nanocomposites were synthesized by the sol-gel method with different SiO2 contents (0.125, 0.25, 0.50 and 0.75%wt). The characteristics of prepared samples were obtained from x-ray diffractometer (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM), UV–visible spectrophotometer, and Brunauer Emmett and Teller (BET) surface area analyzer. SiO2-TiO2 nanocomposites have higher UV absorption capability and a higher specific surface area compared to pure TiO2, resulting in improved dye degradation by photocatalytic activity. The results show that the dye degradation efficiency of 0.5SiO2-TiO2 is higher than pure TiO2. It can degrade the dye up to 96.91% within 2 h, while TiO2 was able to degrade dye at 88.62%.