Removal of pharmaceutically active substance ibuprofen from aqueous solution using TiO2/ZSM-5 zeolite hybrid photocatalysts

Abstract

Removal of pharmaceutically active substance ibuprofen (IBU) from aqueous solution was studied using TiO2/ZSM-5 zeolite hybrid photocatalysts synthesized from 20 wt% TiO2 P25 nanoparticles and ZSM-5 zeolites with different Si/Al ratio (11.5, 15, 25, 40 and 140). The hybrid materials were prepared by a simple and economic ultrasound assisted solid-state dispersion method and characterized by X-ray powder diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and ultraviolet-visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy. Among them, the hybrid photocatalyst containing TiO2 and ZSM-5 zeolite with a Si/Al= 40 (denoted as TZ(40)) showed the highest removal efficiency, achieving 85% IBU removal after 80 min under UV irradiation. The optimal condition for the removal of IBU from deionized water was found to be at a natural pH = 4.5. Moreover, the removal of IBU from bottled drinking water in the presence of TZ(40) hybrid material was tested. Only 32% IBU removal was achieved because change in pH value of reaction suspension decreased efficiency of IBU removal.