Insights into the effect of parameters and pathway of visible-light photodegradation of glyphosate and diazinon by C-TiO2/clinoptilolite nanocomposite

In this study, Carbon-doped TiO2/clinoptilolite nanocomposite was synthesized by sol–gel method, and it was investigated for the destruction of two organophosphorus pesticides, glyphosate, and diazinon, in an aqueous environment under visible light. The synthesized catalyst was characterized using FE-SEM, TEM, FT-IR, XRD, EDX, BET, and DRS techniques. The degradation efficiencies of 84% and 89.67% were obtained for glyphosate and diazinon under optimal conditions (initial concentration of pesticides: 30 mg L−1, solution pH of glyphosate: 3, solution pH of diazinon: 6, catalyst dosage: 0.3 g L−1), respectively. The photocatalytic degradation of both pesticides followed the pseudo-first-order kinetics. Also, photodegradation mechanisms and pathways were investigated. In this research, a new catalyst with high efficiency was synthesized, which can be used for the degradation of other organic compounds.