STUDIES ON TITANIUM OXIDE CATALYST DOPED WITH HEAVY METALS (CADMIUM, COPPER AND NICKEL)

In order to improve the photo-efficiency of the electronic process as well as the response into the visible part of the spectrum, TiO(2) doping with heavy metal (cadmium, cooper and nickel) have been employed. The objectives of this work are: (a) to prepare doped Me(Cd, Cu, Ni) TiO(2) by doctor blade (DB) and spray pyrolysis deposition (SPD) techniques, (b) to characterize the catalysts, (c) to study and compare the activity of the Cd-TiO(2) , Cu-TiO(2) and Ni-TiO(2) catalysts on methyl orange (MO) photodegradation using these novel substrates. The phase structure, microstructure and surface properties of the films were characterized by using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). The samples Me-TiO(2)-DB presents a higher photocatalytic degradation efficiency of MO than Me-TiO(2)-SPD, but the SPD is a low cost deposition technique for large area thin films and is economically more attractive than doctor blade.