Photocatalytic Degradation of Phenol and Phenol Derivatives Using a Nano-TiO2 Catalyst: Integrating Quantitative and Qualitative Factors Using Response Surface Methodology

Water

Marissa Choquette-Labbé¹  Wudneh A. Shewa¹  Jerald A. Lalman² 

[1] Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Windsor, 401 Sunset Ave., Windsor, ON N9B 3P4, Canada;

关键词: photocatalysis;    titanium dioxide;    o-cresol;    m-cresol;    phenol;    statistical modeling;    quantitative factors;    qualitative factors;   

DOI  :  10.3390/w6061785

来源: mdpi

【 摘 要 】

Due to the toxicity effects and endocrine disrupting properties of phenolic compounds, their removal from water and wastewater has gained widespread global attention. In this study, the photocatalytic degradation of phenolic compounds in the presence of titanium dioxide (TiO₂) nano-particles and UV light was investigated. A full factorial design consisting of three factors at three levels was used to examine the effect of particle size, temperature and reactant type on the apparent degradation rate constant. The individual effect of TiO₂ particle size (5, 10 and 32 nm), temperature (23, 30 and 37 °C) and reactant type (phenol, o-cresol and m-cresol) on the apparent degradation rate constant was determined. A regression model was developed to relate the apparent degradation constant to the various factors. The largest photocatalytic activity was observed at an optimum TiO₂ particle size of 10 nm for all reactants. The apparent degradation rate constant trend was as follows: o-cresol > m-cresol > phenol. The ANOVA data indicated no significant interaction between the experimental factors. The lowest activation energy was observed for o-cresol degradation using 5-nm TiO₂ particles. A maximum degradation rate constant of 0.0138 min⁻¹ was recorded for o-cresol at 37 °C and a TiO₂ particle size of 13 nm at a D-optimality value of approximately 0.98. The response model adequately related the apparent degradation rate constant to the factors within the range of factors under consideration.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© 2014 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.