Photocatalytic Degradation of Dicofol and Pyrethrum with Boric and Cerous Co-doped TiO2 under Light Irradiation

Boric and cerous co-doped nano titanium dioxide (B/Ce co-doped TiO2) was synthesized Using a sol-gel technique, which involved the hydrolyzation of tetrabutyl titanate with the addition of boric acid and cerous nitrate. The B/Ce co-doped TiO2, was employed for the photocatalytic degradation of dicofol, cyfluthrin and fenvalerate under light irradiation. XRD, TEM, FT-IR and UV-Vis DRS methods were used to characterize the crystalline structure. Experimental results showed that only the anatase signal phase was found for B/Ce co-doped TiO2, but multiplicate phases, including anatase, rutile and less brookite phases. were identified both in the pure TiO2 nanoparticles and Ce-doped TiO2 nanoparticles. The band gap value of B/Ce co-doped nano TiO2 was narrower than that of undoped nano TiO2. Compared to undoped TiO2, a stronger absorption in the range of 420 to 850 urn was found for B/Ce co-doped nano TiO2, which presented a higher photocatalytic activity in the degradation of dicofol, cyfluthrin and fenvalerate than both Ce doped nano TiO2 and pure nano TiO2 under the same light irradiation.