Photocatalytic mineralisation of organic compounds: a comparison of flame-made TiO2 catalysts

Abstract

A comparative photocatalytic analysis was carried out on TiO2 made in a Flame Spray Pyrolysis (FSP) process and flame-made Degussa P25. Both have similar crystallinity, phase composition, phase segregation and a non-porous surface. Hence comparison was made based on their difference in specific surface area, organic adsorption and the amount of OH• generated upon illumination. The photocatalytic activity tests were carried out using the following series of organic compounds: sucrose, glucose, fructose, maleic acid, glyoxylic acid, oxalic acid, isobutyric acid, phenol and methanol. FSP-made TiO2 outperformed P25 for saccharides mineralisation, while for phenol and methanol mineralisation P25 was better than FSP-made TiO2. Similar mineralisation rates were observed for both FSP-made and P25 TiO2 for the mineralisation of carboxylic acids. This shows that the relative performance of the photocatalysts depends on the type of organic compounds to be degraded. The high surface area and possibly a more efficient interfacial charge transfer of FSP-made TiO2 provided an efficient pathway for saccharides mineralisation. As for phenol and methanol, the mineralisation rates were higher when using P25 due to the greater amount of OH• radicals generated by this photocatalyst. The fast mineralisation rates of carboxylic acids made degradation of these organic compounds to be less affected by the TiO2 photocatalyst properties and conditions tested in this work.