Photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue by a combination of TiO2-anatase and coconut shell activated carbon

TiO2-anatase is obtained directly by chemical vapor condensation (T-95), or from a commercial catalyst (P-25). TiO2 nanoparticles and coconut shell activated carbon, CSAC, are mixed with mass ratios of 1/1 (CT-1, CP-1) and 2/1 (CT-2, CP-2), respectively. These nanomaterials are characterized by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) surface area, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The catalyst obtained from the CVC process is better than the commercial one in a comparison of the physico-chemical properties, and was also confirmed by the photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue (MB). The composited catalysts (CSAC/TiO2) are better than CSAC or naked TiO2 only. At the same TiO2 to CSAC mass ratio, the MB removal efficiencies followed the trend: CT-2 > CT-1 > CP-2 > CP-1 > T-95 > CSAC > P-25. Furthermore, the advantages of the CT-2 catalyst revealed its practical potential to treat pollutants.