Degradation of Organic and Toxic Pollutants by Embedding the Barium Titanate Nanoparticles in Polyaniline Matrix (BaTiO3@PANI)

Abstract

The embedment of barium titanate nanoparticles (BaTiO3 NPs) in the polyaniline (PANI) matrix play a significant role in enhancing the properties of nanocomposites. In this research work BaTiO3@PANI polymer nanocomposites were well synthesized by the in-situ polymerization by embedding different concentrations of BaTiO3 NPs (1wt%, 3wt%, 5wt%, 7wt %) in the polyaniline matrix. The resulting nanocomposites were characterized for their structural, optical and photocatalytic properties. BaTiO3@PANI nanocomposites exhibited higher photocatalytic activity than pure PANI and pure BaTiO3 NPs towards the organic and toxic pollutants in liquid phase under visible light irradiation. The embedment of BaTiO3 NPs in PANI have played an important role in affecting the photo reactivity and the increased weight ratio of BaTiO3 NPs in PANI increased the photocatalytic efficiency of nanocomposites. The structural and optical properties were studied by XRD, FTIR and UV-Visible spectroscopy. The XRD confirmed the embedment of BaTiO3 NPs in PANI matrix. The Fourier Transform Infra-Red (FTIR) spectroscopy identified the various functional groups and their respective vibrational and stretching modes. The results revealed that higher concentration of BaTiO3 NPs in PANI proves to be a better photocatalyst. This work provides a comprehensive information to modify the polymers with nanoparticles.