Sulphonated cobalt phthalocyanine-MCM-41: an active photocatalyst for degradation of 2,4-dichlorophenol

The photocatalytic activity of sulphonated cobalt phthalocyanine immobilized onto MCM-41 was investigated for decomposition of 2,4-dichlorophenol (2,4-DCP) in aqueous solutions. Immobilization of anion sulpho-cobalt phthalocyanine to the walls of MCM-41 was performed by pre-anchorage of 3-(aminopropyl)-triethoxysilane (APTES) onto MCM-41 via post-synthesis method. X-ray diffraction, nitrogen physisorption, diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray and FT-IR methods were used to characterize the product. Photocatalytic efficiency of the prepared catalyst for degradation of 2,4-DCP was tested under illumination of UV-A and visible light. The results obtained reveal that the photocatalyst is very active in degradation of 2,4-DCP. The photodegradation process is completed within 3h using a dose of 0.6g/L of the catalyst under UV irradiation. The reactions follow a pseudo-first-order kinetics and the observed rate constant values change with 2,4-DCP concentrations. The reproducibility of the catalyst was tested. The reaction intermediates were identified by gas chromatoghraphy-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) technique.