Study on the degradation of the dye wastewater with polyaniline on titanium nanotubes

Polyaniline/titanium nanotube composite (PANI/TNT) photocatalysts were prepared by 'in situ'chemical oxidative polymerization of aniline. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform IR spectra (FTIR) and UV-Visible spectroscopy measurements were used to characterize the obtained photocatalysts, and their photocatalytic activities were investigated by degrading Reactive Green19 (RG19) under near visible light irradiation (lambda = 365 nm). The content of PANI, pH, dosage, and concentration of RG19 were also investigated. The results showed that the inner diameter of the PANI/TNT was 6 nm and that the PANI did not change the structure of the TNT. The PANI was coated on the surface of the TNT. The light response of the PANI/TNT was extended to the visible-light regions. Among the six different kinds of photocatalysts, the 1.17 wt% PANI/TNT had the best performance in treating 10 ppm RG19. The best pH is 3 for the largely protonated surface of the composite at low pH. The adsorption amount was increased as the dosage increased. The decolonization efficiency decreased with increasing initial RG19 concentration. The performance of the photocatalyst in decomposing RG19 was stable after 5 time cycles.