Fe/TiO2 Catalyst for Photodegradation of Phenol in Water

In this work, Fe/ TiO2 nanostructured catalyst was prepared using the sol-gel method developed by Yoldas and tested for degradation of phenol in water under UV radiation. The synthesized catalyst was characterized by XRF; XRD; specific surface area, and porosimetry; and SEM methods. SEM results confirmed the nano dispersion of iron oxides on titania support. Effects of Fe load of the catalyst, dosage of the catalyst, pH, H2O2 amount, and time were investigated. Results of phenol photodegradation over Fe/TiO2 showed that the reaction followed an apparent first order kinetics at low phenol concentration, and apparent rate constant was 0.0017 min-1. Also, there was an optimum for Fe load of the catalyst. The better photocatalytic activity of Fe/TiO2 coated on leca particles was observed in comparison to Fe/TiO2 powder.