Preparation of an Au-TiO2 photocatalyst and its performance in removing phycocyanin

A novel TiO2 photocatalyst (Au-TiO2 composite film) with enhanced photocatalytic activity has been synthesized, characterized and its performance in the removal of phycocyanin (PC) was investigated. The results show that the Au-TiO2 composite film has a lower electron-hole recombination rate, wider optical response range and high electron transfer rate. The photocatalytic activity of the as-prepared Au-TiO(2 )composite photocatalyst was observed to be enhanced with the removal efficiency of PC and dissolved organic nitrogen found to be 96.7% and 59%, respectively using the UV/Au-TiO2 process. In addition, the combination of photocatalytic pretreatment and coagulation can achieve an enhanced removal efficiency. The Au-TiO2 photocatalyst was found to decrease the dichloroacetonitrile formation potential (105.9 to 79.3 mu g/L), however, it exacerbated the production of trichloromethane and dichloroacetamide beyond their initial levels (116.7 to 224.9 mu g/L and 2.27 to 2.31 mu g/L, respectively). The divergent trends of these disinfection by-products are due to the fundamental differences in the precursor material. (C) 2019 Elsevier B.V. All tights reserved.