Delaminated montmorillonite with iron(III)-TiO2 species as a photocatalyst for removal of a textile azo-dye from aqueous solution

ABSTRACTA set of mesoporous delaminated montmorillonites containing iron(III)-titanium oxide species was synthesized using two minerals: a bentonite as support and an ilmenite as source of Fe-TiO2 species. Several values of both sulphuric acid concentration and temperature were employed to extract Fe-TiO2 species from an ilmenite. Analyses by X-ray fluorescence, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and nitrogen adsorption–desorption confirmed the successful formation of delaminated (or exfoliated) mesoporous structures. Optical properties of solids were determined by UV–Vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, and their band gap energy values were also calculated. A small UV-shift of band gap values regarding that of commercial photo-active TiO2 was detected as consequence of the quantum size effect, suggesting that photocatalytic experiments should be performed under UV-radiation assistance. The synthesized solids showed good activity in the photocatalytic oxidation of a textile dye (reactive yel...