Sunlight assisted photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue via mesoporous TiO2/RuO2 binary nanosystem

A series of mesoporous TiO2/RuO2 nanosystems were developed via the sol–gel route using pluronic P123 as a structure-directing agent for the sunlight-assisted degradation of methylene blue. From the N2 sorption studies, it follows the formation of type IV adsorption isotherms with an H1-type hysteresis loop indicating a mesoporous structure. A comparative study on photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue was conducted using mesoporous TiO2 and mesoporous TiO2/RuO2 nanosystems with different percentage compositions of RuO2 (0.5,1,2.5 and 5 % respectively). The effect of the mass of the catalyst, the concentration of RuO2, and the concentration of methylene blue is reported. The results revealed the excellent photocatalytic performance of the TiO2/RuO2 nanostructures.