Abstract
In order to deal with the arising environmental issues across the globe at present nano particles with unique properties laid a benchmark in the name of nano catalysis. In this work the significance of calcination temperature on the thermal, electronic, structural and surface properties of a nano catalyst produced by sol-gel method using ultrasonic radiation against the disposal of toxic textile pollutants is studied in detail. The extract of tea leaves has been used as a bio-template during the synthesis to revise the crystallite size, surface area, optical absorption potential, and rate of agglomeration of nano sized grains by regulating their physico-chemical and surface properties. The influence of calcination in the transformation of single phased anatase titania to mixed phase anatase-rutile titania and the corresponding outcome in its photocatalytic activity employed in water treatment applications have been verified. The nano catalyst obtained is characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Transition electron microscopy (TEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), Thermo gravimetric analysis (TGA), Brunaueur Emmett Teller (BET) analysis, UV-Vis diffused reflectance spectroscopy (DRS-UV-Vis) etc. The mesoporosity of the particle was examined using Barrett Joyner Halenda (BJH) model. The enhanced photo catalytic efficiency (about 97.7%) of templated nano titania due to calcination is verified against Congo red, a textile dye under optimized conditions. The nano catalyst produced can be easily separated, recycled to support its economic feasibility.