Host (nanocavity of dealuminated Y zeolite)-guest (Ce(IV) salophen/TiO2) nanocomposite materials as an efficient photocatalyst for degradation of 4-nitrophenol

Ce(IV) salophen encapsulated into dealuminated Y zeolite was prepared by the flexible ligand method. Incorporation of TiO₂ into nanocages of dealuminated Y zeolite was performed by the impregnation method. The obtained photocatalyst was characterized by FT-IR, XRD, DRS, SEM, EDS and ICP techniques. The amount of Ce(salophen) in the zeolite supercages was 0.07 mg/g of encapsulated zeolite. This catalytic system was investigated in the photodegradation of 4-nitrophenol. In this work, the effect of dark conditions, and visible and UV illumination was investigated for the degradation of 4-nitrophenol. In addition, the effect of other parameters including catalyst loading, H₂O₂ and TiO₂ was studied in the degradation of 4-nitrophenol. The obtained results reveal that the photocatalyst performance depends on catalyst loading, the presence of H₂O_2, and UV illumination.