ORIGINAL RESEARCH
Influence of TiO2 Nanoparticles
Synthesizing Techniques on Photocatalytic
Degradation of Methylene Blue Dye”
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1
Department of Physics, Faculty of Applied Science, Umm Al-Qura University, Makkah 21955, Saudi Arabia
2
Department of Chemistry, College of Science, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, P.O. Box 1982,
Dammam, 31441, Saudi Arabia
3
Basic and Applied Scientific Research Center- College of Science -Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal Abdulrahman bin
Faisal University, P.O. Box 1982, Dammam, 31441, Saudi Arabia
4
Department of Physics, College of Science, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, P.O. Box 1982,
Dammam, 31441, Saudi Arabia
5
Department of Biology, College of Science, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, P.O. Box 1982, 31441,
Dammam, Saudi Arabia
Submission date: 2023-12-10
Final revision date: 2024-01-26
Acceptance date: 2024-02-15
Online publication date: 2024-09-23
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ABSTRACT
Model photocatalysts composed of titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanoparticles were prepared to assess
the impact of different synthesis techniques on their photocatalytic activity towards methylene blue. TiO2
nanoparticles were synthesized using three distinct methods: high-energy ball-milling (HEBM), sonication,
and pulse laser ablation. The engineered photocatalysts exhibited varying morphology, crystallinity,
and optical properties, as evidenced by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD).
The synthesis techniques notably resulted in different particle sizes, with mean sizes of 121.2 nm, 25.53 nm,
and 22.38 nm, and corresponding crystallite sizes of 24.86 nm, 33.5 nm, and 34.4 nm for HEBM, sonication,
and pulse laser ablation, respectively. All of the synthesized TiO2 nanoparticles displayed significantly
enhanced photocatalytic activity under low-intensity UV light in comparison to the TiO2 raw material.
However, the choice of synthesis method had a substantial impact on photocatalytic performance. Specifically,
TiO2 prepared via ultrasonication and continuous ball milling exhibited the highest photocatalytic
activity among the methods. The most rapid degradation rate (K = 0.0049 min^(-1)) was observed for TiO2
produced through continuous ball milling and ultrasonication. These findings indicate that the synthesized
TiO2 nanoparticles hold potential for use as catalysts for degrading various types of organic pollutants.