Synthesis and characterization of barium-doped TiO₂ nanocrystals for photocatalytic degradation of acid red 18 under solar irradiation

Addition to the aesthetic negative environmental impacts, dyes have serious negative biological and chemical effects on the environment. The aim of this study was to investigate the removal of acid red 18 from aqueous solution using novel barium oxide added to titanium oxide nanocrystals. Moreover, these doping conditions resulted in reducing the bandgap energy significantly, which in turn makes them active under sunlight illumination. The barium doped TiO₂ nanocrystals were synthesized under mild hydrothermal conditions and were characterized by XRD, FTIR, SEM, and EDS to investigate the structure and textural features of the nanocrystals. The photodegradation experiments were conducted through the influence of batch degradation parameters such as pH, illumination time, nanocrystals dosage, and initial dye concentration. The results revealed that the removal efficiency of Acid Red 18 was 98.6% under acidic conditions. Moreover, the removal efficiency increased by reducing the initial dye concentration, increasing illumination time, and nanocrystals dosage. The characterization results confirmed the high crystallinity, lack of agglomeration and excellent dispersion of the barium doped TiO₂ nanocrystals in the media. Therefore, the barium doped TiO₂ nanocrystals could be used for photodegradation of organic pollutants from the aqueous media.