Photocatalysis of Ag-loaded MgTiO3 for degradation of fuchsin dye and dyes present in textile wastewater under sunlight

The growing concern over the release of personal care items and toxic dye substances into the environment spurred the adoption of risk assessment and management. Our research focuses on the fabrication of MgTiO₃ by a sonochemical approach and improving its photocatalytic characteristics by loading it with Ag metal. This change allows the photocatalyst to efficiently absorb broad-spectrum solar light while effectively separating charges, which are critical for photocatalysis. Both MgTiO₃ and Ag-MgTiO₃ were discovered to exhibit spherical shapes, with Ag showing as smaller spheres and MgTiO₃ as bigger ones. The Ag-MgTiO₃ photocatalyst effectively degraded Fuchsin dye (Fuc) under solar light exposure, achieving a rate constant of 0.0314 min⁻¹ over 50 min. Comparable tests with visible and UV light produced lower Fuc breakdown rates of 87 % and 62.3 %, respectively, highlighting direct sunlight as our catalyst’s most effective light source (99.2 %). Even at a low catalyst dosage (0.3 g/L), Ag-MgTiO₃ demonstrated excellent efficiency of 99.2 % compared to 55.6 % with pristine MgTiO₃. Its photocatalytic activity substantially outperformed commerical TiO₂-P25 powder, which only achieved 42 % removal of fuc dye. The catalyst had a zero charge surface pH of 4.46 and achieved maximum Fuc decomposition efficiency at pH 7. Reusability experiments showed the catalyst’s high stability, with an 81.8 % Fuc degradation efficiency after five repetitions. Scavenger studies emphasized the crucial role of O₂^•- active species in the photodecomposition process, including DMSO, a marked alteration lowering Fuc degradation effectiveness to 37.5 %. Additionally, Ag-MgTiO₃ showed a remarkable 67.8 % reduction in total organic carbon (TOC) for Fuc Dye. HRMS demonstrated the formation of simpler intermediates during contaminant degradation. Ag-MgTiO₃, with its simple synthesis method and outstanding performance, is a promising alternative for eliminating persistent pollutants in textile wastewater systems.