Zr-doped TiO2 supported on delaminated clay materials for solar photocatalytic treatment of emerging pollutants

Solar light-active Zr-doped TiO2 nanoparticles were successfully immobilized on delaminated clay materials by a one-step sol-gel route. Fixing the amount of TiO2 at 65 wt.%, this work studies the influence of Zr loading (up to 2%) on the photocatalytic activity of the resulting Zr-doped TiO2/clay materials. The structural characterization demonstrates that all samples were formed by a delaminated clay with nanostructured anatase assembled on its surface. The Zr dopant was successfully incorporated into the anatase lattice, resulting in a slight deformation of the anatase crystal and the reduction of the band gap. These materials exhibit high surface area with a disordered mesoporous structure formed by TiO2 particles (15-20 nm) supported on a delaminated clay. They were tested in the solar photodegradation of antipyrine, usually used as an analgesic drug and selected as an example of emerging pollutant. High degradation rates have been obtained at low antipyrine concentrations and high solar irradiation intensities with the Zr-doped TiO2/clay catalyst, more effective than the undoped one. This work demonstrates the potential application of the synthesis method for preparing novel and efficient solar-light photocatalysts based on metal-doped anatase and a delaminated clay.