Organo-montmorillonite supported titania nanocomposite synthesized by using poly(methyl methacrylate) grafted cellulose as template and its application in photodegradation

We report a study on the synthesis of a nanocomposite that contains anatase titania (TiO 2 ) particles, organo-montmorillonite (OMMT) and cellulose-g-poly(methyl methacrylate) (cellulose-g-PMMA), and the application of the nanocomposite as a photocatalyst in degradation of 2,4-dichlorophenol (2,4-DCP). The nanocomposite was characterized by Fourier-transform infrared spectra, X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. The photocatalytic activity of the nanocomposite was evaluated by the photoreaction of 2,4-DCP. We compared the photocatalytic activity of the nanocomposite in the presence or absence of OMMT, PMMA and TiO 2 . The photocatalytic activity of the nanocomposite was also compared with commercial TiO 2 nanoparticles. The synthetic nanocomposite exhibits the highest photocatalytic activity. After the fourth time recycling, the nanocomposite still maintains more than 90 % of its photocatalytic activity.