Ciprofloxacin Degradation Using a PANI-Derived Mesoporous Carbon/TiO2 Photocatalyst

This paper presents one-step ciprofloxacin degradation via photocatalysis using TiO2@PANI. A TiO2@PANI material was produced via in situ polymerization through aniline monomer attachment into the surface of anatase nano TiO2. Pyrolysis was conducted to enhance pore properties. The properties of the TiO2@PANI material were characterized using N2 sorption, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy with energy-dispersive X-ray, X-ray diffraction, and ash content analysis. A mesoporous pore characteristic is successfully obtained, with a mean pore diameter of approximately 20 nm. A ciprofloxacin degradation experiment showed that TiO2@PANI, 90%, 400 °C, completely degraded ciprofloxacin with a reaction rate constant of 0.03489 min−1. The effect of TiO2 loading and UV lamp power was also investigated. Two mathematical models were explored i.e. heterogeneous and pseudo-homogenous first-order models to obtain a comprehensive understanding of the reaction mechanism. Both models provide a good fit. Recyclability analysis shows that TiO2@PANI has better durability compared with bare TiO2 after 5 cycles.