Mechanism and Purification Effect of Photocatalytic Wastewater Treatment Using Graphene Oxide-Doped Titanium Dioxide Composite Nanomaterials

The present work aims to examine the mechanism and purification effect of graphene oxide (GO) and GO composite materials for photocatalysis sewage treatment. TiO₂ nanoparticles were prepared using the sol-gel technique; GO was prepared using the modified Hummers technique; and finally, a new N-TiO₂/GO photocatalysis composite material was prepared by hydrothermal synthesis. As a nitrogen source, urea uses non-metal doping to broaden the photoresponse range of TiO₂. The prepared GO and its composite materials are characterized. Simulation experiments, using the typical water dye pollutant rhodamine B (RhB), tested and analyzed the adsorption and photocatalysis performances of the prepared GO and its composite materials. Characterization analysis demonstrates that TiO₂ is distributed on the GO surface in the prepared N-TiO₂/GO material. Simultaneously, nitrogen doping causes TiO₂ on the GO surface to seem uniformly dispersed. X-ray Diffractometer (XRD) spectrums suggest that TiO₂ on the GO surface presents an anatase crystal structure; infrared spectrums display the characteristic vibration peaks of the TiO₂ and GO. Adsorption performance analysis illustrates that N-TiO₂/GO can provide an adsorption amount of 167.92 mg/g in the same time frame and photocatalysis for visible lights of 57.69%. All data present an excellent linear fitting relationship to the first-order dynamic equation. Therefore, the prepared GO composite materials possess outstanding absorption and photocatalysis performances, providing an experimental basis for sewage treatment and purification using photocatalysis approaches in the future.