Synthesis of Nano-Composite Ag/TiO₂ for Polyethylene Microplastic Degradation Applications

Abstract The aim of this research is to synthesize Ag/TiO 2 nano-composites to study their ability to degrade microplastics in water, followed by varying size of microplastic particles as pollutants in drinking water. The method used for synthesizing Ag/TiO 2 is Photo Assisted Deposition (PAD). Characterizations done to determine the difference between TiO 2 and Ag/TiO 2 were SEM-EDX and UV-Vis DRS. Polyethylene microplastics were selected as samples in this study. The variation of microplastic size used is 100-125, 125-150, and 150-250 micrometers with initial concentrations of 100 ppm. Magnetic stirrers used at a rotational speed of 2000 rpm during the degradation process with a UV lamp irradiation. The addition of the Ag dopant has a good effect in microplastic degradation, where the percentage of degradation reaches 100% within 120 minutes of irradiation at an initial concentration of 100 ppm. An initial concentration of 100 ppm obtained the best percent degradation at particle size 125-150 micrometers, where 100% degradation achieved at 90 minutes irradiation.