Preparation and photocatalytic performance of TiO₂/lignin-based carbon composited photocatalyst

Abstract

Abstract In this study, the lignin-based carbon/TiO 2 (LCT) nanocomposite photocatalyst was prepared by the Sol-gel-carbonization method. The raw material of carbon precursor was lignin extracted from coconut by the solvent heating method. The optimal conditions for lignin extraction, such as material ratio, temperature and time, were investigated. The optimum extraction conditions for lignin were determined as follows: material ratio of 1:7, heating time of 4 hours, and heating temperature of 110 °C. The photocatalytic results demonstrated that the prepared LCT exhibited efficient degradation of MO, achieving a degradation efficiency of up to 91.8% within 2 hours, whereas pure TiO 2 showed negligible degradation ability under visible light. Moreover, the LCT composite exhibited good stability during the photodegradation process.