Comparative Study on the Photodegradation of Indigo Caramine Dye Using Commercial TiO2 and Natural Rutile

The photocatalytic degradation of Indigo Caramine dye using commercial TiO₂ and fine grained natural rutile has been carried out. The commercial TiO₂ and natural rutile were characterized using powder X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Fourier transformed infra red spectroscopy (FTIR). The study on the photodegradation of Indigo Caramine dye using commercial TiO₂ and natural rutile were investigated both under Solar and UV irradiation. The degradation of Indigo Caramine dye was checked by the following parameters like Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD), %T, irradiation time and duration. In both cases using commercial TiO₂ and natural rutile, the COD of the dye solution was reduced from 288 mg/L to less than 20 mg/L, and similarly the %T was increased from 76% to 97% and the percentage decomposition upto 97% within the irradiation duration of 3.5 hrs. The preliminary results obtained on the photodegradation of Indigo Caramine dye are highly encouraging and further work is being carried out for the use of the natural rutile or anatase sources for the other organic decomposition and treatment of industrial effluents.