Photocatalytic degradation of methyl orange and methyl violet dyes by UV/Cu2+/PDS process

Abstract

This research is focused on the application of the UV/Cu2+/peroxydisulfate (PDS) system for the successful decolorization of methyl orange (MO) and methyl violet (MV) dyes in aqueous media. The effects of different parameters such as the equilibrium time, initial catalyst amount, PDS concentration and pH of the media in terms of MO and MV degradation were studied. Furthermore, the photocatalytic performance of the UV/Cu2+/PDS system was also investigated by performing the degradation of MO and MV in different water systems including distilled water, synthetic wastewater and industrial wastewater samples. The results revealed 94 and 89% degradation for MO and MV dyes in the UV/Cu2+/PDS system, respectively. The radical quenching experiments showed sulfate radicals (SO4·-) as the prominent species involved in the degradation of MO and MV dyes. Overall, it was concluded that the UV/Cu2+/PDS process has the ability to be adopted for the effective elimination of contaminants from the aquatic system.