TiO ₂/activated carbon fibers photocatalyst: Effects of coating procedures on the microstructure, adhesion property, and photocatalytic ability

In order to more easily separate TiO ₂ photocatalyst from the treated wastewater, TiO ₂ film was immobilized on the surface of activated carbon fibers (ACFs) by employing two kinds of coating procedures, dip-coating, and hydrothermal treatment. The effects of coating procedures on microstructure of TiO ₂-coated ACFs (TiO ₂/ACFs), such as morphology, porous property, crystal structure, and light absorption characteristics were investigated in detail. The adhesion property between TiO ₂ film and ACFs was evaluated by ultrasonic vibration, and the photocatalytic activity of TiO ₂/ACFs was tested by the photocatalytic decoloration of methylene blue solution. The results show that hydrothermal treatment presented many advantages to obtain high-performance TiO ₂/ACFs photocatalyst in comparison with dip-coating. Hydrothermal treatment could improve the binding property between TiO ₂ films and ACFs, which endowed the as-obtained TiO ₂/ACFs photocatalyst with improved reusable performance, and TiO ₂/ACFs synthesized by hydrothermal treatment presented higher photocatalytic activity.