Document Type
Article
Publication Date
11-10-2023
Abstract
Photocatalytic advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) promise a chemical-free route to energy-efficient degradation of waterborne micropollutants if long-standing mass transfer and light management issues can be overcome. Herein, we developed a dual-porous photocatalytic system consisting of a mesoporous (i.e., 2-50 nm pores) TiO2 (P25) photocatalyst supported on macroporous (i.e., >50 nm pores) fused quartz fibers (P25/QF). Our reusable photocatalytic AOP reduces chemical consumption and exhibits excellent energy efficiency, demonstrated by degrading various pharmaceutical compounds (acetaminophen, sulfamethoxazole, and carbamazepine) in natural waters with electrical energy per order (EEO) values of 4.07, 0.96, and 1.35 kWh/m3, respectively. Compared to the conventional H2O2/UVC AOP, our photocatalytic AOP can treat water without chemical additives while reducing energy consumption by over 2800%. We examine these improvements based on mass transport and optical (UVA and UVC) transmittance and demonstrate that the enhancements scale with increasing flow rate.
Publication Source (Journal or Book title)
ACS ES and T Engineering
First Page
1694
Last Page
1705
Recommended Citation
Willis, D., Sheets, E., Worbington, M., Kamat, M., Glass, S., Caso, M., Ofoegbuna, T., Diaz, L., Osei-Appau, C., Snow, S., & McPeak, K. (2023). Efficient Chemical-Free Degradation of Waterborne Micropollutants with an Immobilized Dual-Porous TiO2 Photocatalyst. ACS ES and T Engineering, 3 (11), 1694-1705. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsestengg.3c00191