Preparation and photocatalytic properties of Fe-doped TiO2 nanoparticles

Nanocrystalline Fe-doped TiO2 with size of 60 – 70 nm was prepared by a sol-gel technique, followed by freeze-drying treatment for 2 h. Thermogravimetric and differential thermal analyses, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscope, laser diffraction particle size analyzer and UV-Vis spectrophotometer technologies were used to characterize the product. The photocatalytic activities of the samples were evaluated by the degradation of wastewater of paper-making. The effects of Fe ion implantation on the photocatalytic activity of TiO2 were also discussed. The results show that the iron content plays an essential role in affecting the photocatalytic activity of the Fe-doped TiO2 and the optimum content of Fe-doped is 0.05% (mass fraction). The photocatalytic activity of samples with lower content of Fe-doped is higher than that of pure TiO2 in the treatment of paper-making wastewater. The photo-degradation effect of paper-making effluent is the best by means of Fe-doped TiO2 with 0.05% Fe.