Adsorption and degradation of toluene over TiO₂ supported on bamboo charcoal

TiO₂ supported on bamboo charcoal (TiO₂/C) was prepared by impregnating the charcoal with a TiO₂ precursor and baking. The resulting material was characterized by SEM and EPR. Adsorption and degradation of toluene over the TiO₂/C under a UV lamp, fluorescent lamp, incandescent lamp and sunlight was determined. Results showed that pore size in bamboo charcoal was centered around 200 nm and TiO₂ was loaded on the rim and surface of the pores. The number of the un-paired electrons increased from 8.7×10¹³ for bamboo charcoal to 8.9 ×10¹⁷ for TiO₂/C. The oxidationreduction ability of TiO₂/C was significantly higher than that of bamboo charcoal. The toluene removal efficiency and the released CO₂ were 94.50% and 122mg/m³ respectively after toluene was exposed to TiO₂/C under UV for 12h. The corresponding figures were 76.80% and 60mg/m³ under sunlight for 12h in TiO₂/C.