Characterization and Photocatalytic Efficiency of Palladium Doped-TiO₂ Nanoparticles

Ahmed A. Abd El-Rady, Mahmmoud S. Abd El-Sadek, Mohamed M. El-Sayed Breky, Fawzy H. Assaf

Chemistry Department, Faculty of Science, South Valley University, Qena, Egypt.
Nanomaterials Lab, Physics Department, Faculty of Science, South Valley University, Qena, Egypt.

DOI: 10.4236/anp.2013.24051                

Abstract

The effect of modification of TiO₂ with different palladium concentrations on its characteristics and photocatalytic efficiency was studied. Photo catalysts were prepared by the sol-gel method and were characterized by different techniques. A uniform distribution of palladium through the TiO₂ matrix was observed. The X-ray diffraction patterns of the pure and palladium doped TiO₂ were found to be quiet similar and the average particle size was not significantly changed. As a result of palladium doping, the UV-Vis analysis showed a red shift in the onset of wavelength of absorbance and the band gap was changed from 3.39 to 3.06 eV for the 0.3 wt% Pd/TiO₂ sample. Photo catalytic removal study of formic acid showed that the 0.3 wt% palladium doped photocatalyst exhibits the highest efficiency among the different palladium doped photocatalysts using sun light as the radiation source.

Keywords

TiO₂ Nanoparticles; Sol-Gel Process; Thermal Analysis; Photocatalyst; and Formic Acid

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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