Immobilization of self-assembled pre-dispersed nano-TiO 2 onto montmorillonite and its photocatalytic activity

The immobilization of pre-dispersed TiO2 colloids onto the external surface of the clay mineral montmorillonite (Mt) was accomplished and regulated via a self-assembly method employing the cationic surfactant cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB). The role of CTAB in the synthesis process was investigated by preparing a series of TiO2-CTAB-Mt composites (TCM) with various CTAB doses. The results indicated that a uniform and continuous TiO2 film was deposited on the external surface of montmorillonite in the composite synthesized with 0.1wt.% of CTAB, and the TCM nano-composites showed much higher values for specific surface area, average pore size and pore volume than the raw montmorillonite clay. Then, the formed TCM materials were applied in photocatalytic degradation of 2,4-dichlorophenol (2,4-DCP) in aqueous solution. The degradation efficiency reached as high as 94.7%. Based on the degradation intermediates benezoquinone, fumaric acid and oxalic acid identified by LC–MS analysis, a mechanism for the photocatalytic oxidation of 2,4-DCP on TiO2/Mt nano-composites is proposed.