Influence of operational key parameters on the photocatalytic decolorization of Rhodamine B dye using Fe2+/H2O2/Nb2O5/UV system

The present research deals with the development of a new heterogeneous photocatalysis and Fenton hybrid system for the removal of color from textile dyeing wastewater as Rhodamine B (RhB) solutions by using Fe2+/H2O2/Nb2O5 as a photocatalytic system. The application of this photocatalytic system for the decolorization of dye contaminants is not reported in the literature yet. Different parameters like dye concentration, Nb2O5/Fe2+ catalyst amount, pH, and H2O2 concentration have been studied. The optimum conditions for the decolorization of the dye were initial concentration of 10 mg L-1 of dye, pH 4, and Nb2O5/Fe2+ catalyst concentration of 0.5 g L-1/50 mg L-1. The optimum value of H2O2 concentration for the conditions used in this study was 700 mg L-1. Moreover, the efficiency of the Nb2O5/photo-Fenton hybrid process in comparison to photo-Fenton alone and a dark Fenton process as a control experiment to decolorize the RhB solution has been investigated. The combination of photo-Fenton and Nb2O5 catalysts has been proved to be the most effective for the treatment of such type of wastewaters. The results revealed that the RhB dye was decolorized in a higher percent (78 %) by the Nb2O5/photo-Fenton hybrid process (Fe2+/H2O2/Nb2O5/UV) than by the photo-Fenton process alone (37 %) and dark Fenton process (14 %) after 120 min of treatment. Moreover, the Nb2O5 catalyst as a heterogeneous part of the photocatalytic system was demonstrated to have good stability and reusability.