Enzyme mediated synthesis of Ag–TiO2 photocatalyst for visible light degradation of reactive dye from aqueous solution

The purpose of this study was to develop bio-inspired photocatalyst with solar light activity for textile dye degradation. Three TiO 2 samples namely TiO 2 (TiO 2 -A), biotemplated TiO 2 (TiO 2 -B), and enzyme mediated Ag–TiO 2 biotemplate (TiO 2 -C), were developed. The presence of anatase phase of TiO 2 and silver in synthesized samples were confirmed using X-ray diffraction, field emission scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive spectroscopy, and UV–Vis–NIR spectroscopy. Photocatalytic efficiencies of these photocatalysts were evaluated by studying the oxidation of a commercial reactive dye (reactive black) under solar light irradiation in batch reactors. Photocatalytic efficiencies of the sample were compared using statistical tools like one-way ANOVA and Tukey test. The results confirmed that photocatalytic efficiency of TiO 2 -C was 40 % higher than that of TiO 2 -A under solar light irradiation.