Abstract
The photocatalysis of DEET was examined using aqueous TiO2 dispersions in the presence of various concentrations of humic acid (HA) and fulvic acid (FA) in order to simulate the influence of natural organic matter (NOM) present during water treatment. Pseudo-first-order kinetics were observed for each set of samples. A decrease in the photodegradation of DEET was observed after the addition of a lignite HA, whereas a slight increase of the photocatalytic activity was observed using the synthetic HA (aromatic-ring rich) for the lower HA concentrations. The addition of FA was found more beneficial for the photocatalytic degradation of DEET. Retardation of photocatalysis could be attributed to the combination of radiation attenuation, competition for active sites-surface deactivation of the catalyst by adsorption and radical scavenging, while enhancement effects could be attributed to e− transfer processes, conduction band (cb) TiO2 e− capture for HA and photosensitization (e− injection to TiO2) for FA.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
