Combination of palm tree wood-derived tiO ₂ -Carbon with visible light-activated peroxydisulfate for wastewater treatment: characterization, initial pH, and tiO ₂ composition effects

Herein, a photocatalyst based on Palm tree wood-derived activated carbon (PTAC) was synthesized with varying TiO2 loadings (5%, 10%, 15%, 20%, and 25%) to evaluate its performance individually and in combination with sulfate radicals derived from peroxydisulfate (PDS) in the degradation of Tetracycline (TC), compared to TiO2 alone. The effect of the initial solution pH (ranging from 4 to 10) on photocatalytic efficiency was also examined. Among the tested systems, the TiO2-PDS combination demonstrated the highest degradation activity, outperforming the TiO2-PTAC system. Characterization of the materials was conducted using a range of analytical techniques, including XRD, FE-SEM, TEM, BET, PL, UV-Vis, ESR, photocurrent, and Mott-Schottky analyses. The Maximum degradation using TiO2-PTAC and TiO2-PTAC-PDS systems were found to be 71.8% And 99.3%, respectively. Optimal degradation occurred under neutral conditions. Trapping experiments identified sulfate (•SO4-), superoxide (•O2-), and hydroxyl (•OH-) radicals as key contributors to the degradation process.