Development of PANI/TiO₂ Nanocomposites for Visible-light-driven Photocatalytic Treatment of Dye-contaminated Wastewater
J. Environ. Nanotechnol., Volume 15, No 3 (September 2026) pp. 836-850
Abstract
The limited visible-light response of TiO₂ and the rapid recombination of its photogenerated charge carriers restrict its practical application in solar wastewater treatment. Although TiO₂-based composites have been widely investigated, comparative studies evaluating PANI/TiO₂ against multiple chemically distinct dyes under natural sunlight remain limited. In this study, PANI, TiO₂ nanoparticles, and a PANI/TiO₂ nanocomposite were synthesized and characterized using FTIR, UV-visible spectroscopy, and XRD. The novelty of the work lies in integrating the visible-light-harvesting and charge-transport properties of PANI with the photocatalytic stability of TiO₂ and evaluating the resulting composite against methylene blue, malachite green, and Bismarck brown under natural sunlight. The PANI/TiO₂ nanocomposite exhibited substantially greater photocatalytic activity than the individual materials, achieving up to 98% dye degradation under the tested conditions. This enhancement is attributed to improved solar-light absorption and interfacial charge transfer, which reduce electron-hole recombination. The use of natural sunlight eliminates the need for energy-intensive artificial irradiation, highlighting the potential of PANI/TiO₂ as a low-energy photocatalyst for the treatment of dye-contaminated water.
Full Text
Reference
Abedin, M. M., Zaman, S. K. M., Mondal, A., Sultana, M., Amena, M. R., Hossain, M. S., Durjoy, M. N. R., Chakraborty, A. K., Rahman, M. M., Rahaman, M. H., Khatun, M. A. and Nur, A. S. M., Strategic nitrogen doping of Ca-TiO2 photocatalyst for improved dye degradation under UV–Vis irradiation, Appl. Catal. O: Open, 213, 207095(2026).
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apcato.2026.207095
Ahmadiasl, R., Moussavi, G., Shekoohiyan, S. and Razavian, F., Synthesis of Cu-Doped TiO2 Nanocatalyst for the Enhanced Photocatalytic Degradation and Mineralization of Gabapentin under UVA/LED Irradiation: Characterization and Photocatalytic Activity, Catal., 12(11), 1310(2022).
https://doi.org/10.3390/catal12111310
Alwared, A. I., Mohammed, N. A., Al-Musawi, T. J. and Mohammed, A. A., Solar-Induced Photocatalytic Degradation of Reactive Red and Turquoise Dyes Using a Titanium Oxide/Xanthan Gum Composite, Sustain., 15(14), 10815(2023).
https://doi.org/10.3390/su151410815
Balasubramanian, J., Ponnaiah, S. K., Periakaruppan, P. and Kamaraj, D., Accelerated photodeterioration of class I toxic monocrotophos in the presence of one-pot constructed Ag3PO4/polyaniline@g-C3N4 nanocomposite: efficacy in light harvesting, Environ. Sci. Pollut. Res., 27(2), 2328–2339(2020).
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-019-06811-6
Chen, D. D., Yi, X. H., Ling, L., Wang, C. C. and Wang, P., Photocatalytic Cr (VI) sequestration and photo-Fenton bisphenol A decomposition over white light responsive PANI/MIL-88A(Fe), Appl. Organomet. Chem., 34(9), e5795(2020).
https://doi.org/10.1002/aoc.5795
Chinnusamy, C. and Thiyagarajan, R., Investigation of BaZrO3 Nanoparticles for Photocatalytic Activity and the Effects of Y-doping, J. Environ. Nanotechnol., 13 (3) 456-466 (2024).
https://doi.org/10.13074/jent.2024.09.243849
Chhabra, V. A., Kaur, R., Walia, M. S., Kim, K. H. and Deep, A., PANI/PbS QD nanocomposite structure for visible light driven photocatalytic degradation of rhodamine 6G, Environ. Res., 186, 109615(2020).
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envres.2020.109615
Chkirida, S., Zari, N., Achour, R., Qaiss, A. E. K. and Bouhfid, R., Effect of iron doped titanium oxide encapsulated in alginate on photocatalytic activity for the removal of dye pollutants, RSC Adv., 10(38), 22311–22317 (2020).
https://doi.org/10.1039/d0ra02898c
Gaddala, B., Devi, K. V, Balakrishnan, V., Sundramurthy, V. P., Hariprabhu, M., Mayakannan, S., Kadaikunnan, S. and Khaled, J. M., Evaluation of detoxification performance of Pithecellobium dulce seed pod powder upon acid treatment: removal of reactive red 195-A dye and kinetic analysis, Zeitschrift Fur Physikalische Chemie, 239(6), 885–910 (2025).
https://doi.org/10.1515/zpch-2024-0879
Gholizadeh, F., Dianat, M. J. and Izadbakhsh, A., Photocatalytic degradation of phenol using silica SBA-16 supported TiO2, React. Kinetics, Mech. Catal., 130(2), 1171–1192 (2020).
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11144-020-01817-5
Gunti, S., Alamro, T., McCrory, M. and Ram, M. K., The use of conducting polymer to stabilize the nanostructured photocatalyst for water remediation, J. Environ. Chem. Eng., 5(6), 5547–5555 (2017).
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jece.2017.10.036
Hasan, J., Li, H., Tian, G. and Qin, C., Fabrication of Cr2S3-GO-TiO2 composite with high visible-light-driven photocatalytic activity on degradation of organic dyes, Chem. Phy., 539, 110950(2020).
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemphys.2020.110950
Hassan, F., Bonnet, P., Dangwang Dikdim, J. M., Gatcha Bandjoun, N., Caperaa, C., Dalhatou, S., Kane, A. and Zeghioud, H., Synthesis and Investigation of TiO2/g-C3N4 Performance for Photocatalytic Degradation of Bromophenol Blue and Eriochrome Black T: Experimental Design Optimization and Reactive Oxygen Species Contribution, Water (Switzerland), 14(20), 3331(2022).
https://doi.org/10.3390/w14203331
Hema, K., Anishia, S. R., Rajeswari, S., Padmavathy, V., Sujatha, S. and Thiyagu, M., Green Synthesis and Multifunctional Applications of Moringa Oleifera-enhanced TiO₂ Nanocomposites, J. Environ. Nanotechnol., 14(1), 7-17 (2025).
https://doi.org/10.13074/jent.2025.03.2511225
Hiremath, A., Pattar, J., Chandra, S. S., Rao, H. N. A., Sreekanth, R., Mahendra, K., Manohara, S. and Aravinda, T., Designing PANI/g-C₃N₄/Cr₂O₃ composites for integrated environmental and dielectric functionalities, Surf. Interf., 72, 107177(2025).
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.surfin.2025.107177
Idriss, H., Ibrahem, M. A. and Modwi, A. Photocatalytic degradation of Congo red pigment by V2O5-TiO2 nanohybrid, Zeitschrift Fur Naturforschung - Section J. Phy. Sci., 78(1), 67–76 (2023).
https://doi.org/10.1515/zna-2022-0166
Jebasingh, J. A., Vidyavathy, S. M. and Stanley, R., Ultra-fast degradation of thiazine dyes in the presence of natural sunlight by coupling of titania with zinc oxide nanoparticles in the room temperature, J. Iran. Chem. Soc., 21(4), 1131–1140 (2024).
https://doi.org/10.1007/s13738-024-02984-1
Kisała, J., Gnilitskyi, I., Cieniek, B., Krzemiński, P., Marchewka, M., Barylyak, A. and Bobitski, Y., Synthesis of micro‐spikes and herringbones structures by femtosecond laser pulses on a titanium plate—a new material for water organic pollutants degradation, Mater., 14(19), 5556(2021).
https://doi.org/10.3390/ma14195556
Koe, W. S., Chong, W. C., Pang, Y. L., Koo, C. H., Ebrahim, M. and Mohammad, A. W., Novel nitrogen and sulphur co-doped carbon quantum dots/titanium oxide photocatalytic membrane for in-situ degradation and removal of pharmaceutical compound, J. Water Process Eng., 33, 101068(2020).
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jwpe.2019.101068
Kovačević, A., Radoičić, M., Marković, D., Šaponjić, Z. and Radetić, M., Recycled Jute Non-Woven Material Coated with Polyaniline/TiO2 Nanocomposite for Removal of Heavy Metal Ions from Water, Mol., 29(18), 4366(2024).
https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules29184366
Loganathan, A., Sethupathi, N., Mahalingam, P. and Sivakumar, P., Green Synthesis, Structural Characterization and Kinetics of Photocatalytic Degradation of Reactive Blue 19 Dye Using CeO2-doped Reduced Graphene Oxide Nanohybrid, J. Environ. Nanotechnol., 15(1), 576–585(2026).
https://doi.org/10.13074/jent.2026.03.2612126
Patidar, M., Sharma, D., Devi, G. M., Sujithra, L. R., Kumar, S. S. and Kandavalli, S. R., Enhanced Adsorptive Removal of Methylene Blue Using Kaolinite–MnFe2O4 Nanocomposites: Synthesis, Characterization and Adsorption Mechanisms, J. Environ. Nanotechnol., 15(1), 405–417 (2026).
https://doi.org/10.13074/jent.2026.03.2541911
Poudel, M. B., Yu, C. and Kim, H. J., Synthesis of conducting bifunctional polyaniline@mn-TiO2 nanocomposites for supercapacitor electrode and visible light driven photocatalysis, Catal., 10(5), 546 (2020).
https://doi.org/10.3390/catal10050546
Rao, D. P., Krishnasamy, V. D., Selvaraju, M., Sundramurthy, V. P., Kandavalli, S. R., Chitra, M. S., Sivasamy, N. and Thirumoorthy, P., Adsorptive removal of cadmium from electroplating wastewater using hybrid composite of thiol-grafted seed gum of Tamarindus indica and Teff hay biocarbon, Zeitschrift Fur Physikalische Chemie, 239(5), 633–654 (2025).
https://doi.org/10.1515/zpch-2024-0715
Rigoti, E., Schwanke, A. J., Araújo, K. C. F., Martínez-Huitle, C. A. and Pergher, S. B. C., Titanium oxide supported on montmorillonite clays for environmental applications, J. Mex. Chem. Soc., 63(3), 1–12 (2019).
https://doi.org/10.29356/jmcs.v63i3.708
Saha, S., Chaudhary, N., Kumar, A. and Khanuja, M., Polymeric nanostructures for photocatalytic dye degradation: polyaniline for photocatalysis, SN Appl. Sci., 2(6), 1115(2020).
https://doi.org/10.1007/s42452-020-2928-4
Usman, M., Adnan, M., Ali, S., Javed, S. and Aftab Akram, M., Preparation and characterization of pani@nio visible light photocatalyst for wastewater treatment, Chem, Select, 5(40), 12618–12623(2020).
https://doi.org/10.1002/slct.202003540
Vivek, P., Balu, S. and Sundramoorthy, A. K., Photocatalytic Degradation of Binary Dyes, Methyl Orange and Methyl Green, in Aqueous Media Using 2D g-C3N4/Polyaniline/Silver Nanocomposite. Curr. Nanosci., 22(1), 154–168(2026).
https://doi.org/10.2174/0115734137356016250211063405
Wang, Y., Zhang, P., Zhang, T. C., Xiang, G., Wang, X., Pehkonen, S. and Yuan, S., A magnetic γ-Fe2O3@PANI@TiO2core-shell nanocomposite for arsenic removalviaa coupled visible-light-induced photocatalytic oxidation-adsorption process, Nanoscale Adv., 2(5), 2018–2024 (2020).
https://doi.org/10.1039/d0na00171f
Weldekirstos, H. D., Girma, P., Tedla, A., Aberra, N. and Negash, A., Facile Synthesis and Characterization of TiO2/NiO Composite for Photocatalytic Removal of Organic Pollutant Under Sunlight Irradiation, Water, Air Soil Pollut., 236(9), 580(2025).
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-025-08217-2
Zhang, F., Li, X., Zhao, Q., Chen, G. and Zhang, Q., High-performance In2O3@PANI core@shell architectures with ultralong charge carriers lifetime for photocatalytic degradation of gaseous 1,2-dichlorobenzene, Appl. Catal. B: Environ., 263, 118278(2020).
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apcatb.2019.118278
Zhou, Q., Zhao, D., Sun, Y., Sheng, X., Zhao, J., Guo, J. and Zhou, B., g–C3N4– and polyaniline-co-modified TiO2 nanotube arrays for significantly enhanced photocatalytic degradation of tetrabromobisphenol A under visible light, Chemosph., 252, 126468(2020).
