Preparation and characterization of Cu2+/ZnO/TiO2 nanocomposites for the treatment of typical benzene series in oilfield produced water

In order to further investigate photocatalytic materials for the degradation of typical benzene series (benzene, toluene and xylene) in oilfield produced water, Cu2+/ZnO/TiO2 nanocomposites were synthesized by sol-gel method. It was characterized and analyzed using XRD, SEM, FT-IR, UV–vis and TGA. The results show that a certain percentage of doping increase the activity of the photocatalyst and that pH, temperature, initial concentration and catalyst dosage all affected the specific pollutant degradation. After 7 h of photocatalytic treatment, the residual concentrations of pollutants were all in compliance with the required emission standard.