Original Articles
Restu Kartiko Widi*, Arief Bud
Abstract
Surfactant molecule pillared bentonite was prepared and used as porous support for synthesis of TiO2-Fe3O4 based photocatalyst with varying TiO2 and Fe3O4 loading. The raw bentonite was obtained from Pacitan, Indonesia. The kind of surfactants which used on this research was Tetra Methyl Ammonium salt. The loading variations of TiO2- Fe3O4 in this experiment were 1:3 and 3:1. The synthesis of the photocatalytic materials have been carried out by sol-gel method and followed by calcination. The temperature of calcination was at 500, 600, 700 and 800oC. The physicochemical properties of TiO2-Fe3O4 bentonite samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction. Photocatalytic activity of the materials was evaluated by basic blue photo degradation using UV light. The titania and magnetite content in the materials significantly influenced the physicochemical properties and catalytic activity. Optimum TiO2 and Fe3O4 loading in the material produced crystalline of anatase and magnetite furthermore enhanced basic blue degradation.