B.Sc. thesis defense by Kamil Urbański from the Uniwersytet Kardynała Stefana Wyszyńskiego in Warsaw (http://​www​.uksw​.edu​.pl).

Thesis title: Optimization of ​“SonoPhoto” method for the preparation of bimetallic-containing composite materials and their use in photomineralization of aqueous phase organic pollutants. 

Abstract: The industry and agriculture development is causing severe pollution of the aquatic environment. In the present times, the methods used for removing impurities from water are not effective enough. Therefore scientists and industrialists are looking for new, affordable and efficient solutions to this global problem. Among all methods, titania-based heterogeneous solar photocatalysis is a very attractive method to solve this problem. Titanium dioxide has many advantages: it is biologically and chemically inert, inexpensive, photoactive, and has low toxicity.
The aim of this B.Sc. project was to optimize the method named ​“SonoPhotoDeposition” for the preparation of photocatalysts based on titania doped with iron and their use in the photocatalytic mineralization of phenol in water. Fe-doped TiO₂ supported on a zeolite was successfully synthesized using SonoPhoto-Deposition advanced method. The photocatalysts showed high specific surface area (> 600 m²/​g), photoresponse in visible light (band gap approx.. 1.6 eV) ) and were active in aqueous phase phenol mineralization.

Keywords: TiO_2; Sonication; Heterogeneous Photocatalysis; SonoPhotoDeposition.

Congrats to Kamil! Good job!