Fabrication and photocatalytic efficiency of N-TiO2/diatomite hybrid

Abstract This study presents the fabrication and characterization of an N-TiO 2 /Diatomite hybrid photocatalyst, which was synthesized using the sol-gel method with titanium butoxide as the titanium source and urea as the nitrogen source. The hybrid photocatalyst was prepared by loading N-TiO2 onto diatomite, a material known for its strong adsorption capacity and high porosity. X-ray diffraction (XRD) was employed to define the sample’s crystallographic properties, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) provided insights into its surface features, and energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) revealed its elemental distribution. The photocatalytic efficiency of the sample was tested against a methyl orange solution. The results showed that increasing the nitrogen doping level could enhance the photocatalytic efficiency, and the optimal performance was observed when the nitrogen doping amount was 12%. The increase in the loading amount of N - TiO 2 on diatomite also improved the photocatalytic effect. The study demonstrates that the N-TiO 2 /Diatomite hybrid photocatalyst serves as a potent photocatalyst for purifying the environment, with significant promise for degrading contaminants under sunlight.