The dual-frequency (20/40 kHz) ultrasound assisted photocatalysis with the active carbon fiber-loaded Fe3+-TiO2 as photocatalyst for degradation of organic dye

Abstract

Dual-frequency ultrasound assisted photocatalysis (DUAP) method was proposed to degrade a stable organic model effluent, cresol red (CR), using the prepared Fe3+-doped TiO2 with active carbon fiber loading (Fe3+-TiO2/ACF) as photocatalyst. The influence of key factors, including Fe doping amount and power density of dual-frequency ultrasounds (20/40 kHz), on the degradation efficiency was investigated. The degradation efficiency rises to 98.7% in 60 min accompanied by the color removal of CR liquid samples from yellow to colorless transparent at optimal conditions. A synergy index of 1.40 was yielded by comparison with single ultrasound assisted photocatalysis (SUAP) and the photocatalysis without ultrasound assisted (UV/TiO2), indicating that a clear synergistic effect exists for the DUAP process. Obvious enhancement of degradation efficiency for the DUAP process should be attributed to production of large amount of free radicals by strong cavitational effects of dual ultrasounds.