Removal of ethyl benzene vapor pollutant from the air using TiO2 nanoparticles immobilized on the ZSM-5 zeolite under UVradiation in lab scale.

Abstract

Ethyl benzene is a volatile organic compound that is used in the many industries, including Oil and Gas, Oil colored and Insecticides. Due to the toxic effects of this chemical substance control and elimination of this vapor is necessary. Photo catalytic degradation is a possible method to remove organic compounds from air. This study was performed to determine the efficiency of photo catalytic removal of ethyl benzene vapor using TiO2 nanoparticles immobilized on the ZSM-5 zeolite under UV radiation. This was an experimental study. The surface and volume of the pores of the bed were determined by the Bruner-Emmett-Teller (BET) method and Surface structure was determined by Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), EDAX and X-Ray Diffraction (XRD). Dynamic air flow and different concentrations of ethyl benzene (25, 75 and 125ppm) and flow rates (0.5, 0.7, and 1.0L/min) were produced and the removal efficiency of ethyl benzene vapor were investigated using ZSM-5 and TiO2/ZSM-5/UV processes. The temperature and relative humidity were set at 25 ± 2°c and 35%. Evaluations for BET showed the specific surface areas decreased after loading TiO2 on ZSM-5. XRD and EDAX analysis and SEM images showed that zeolite structure was stabled and nanoparticles were successfully stabilized on Ze. The results showed that the highest removal efficiency (52%) by the process of TiO2/ZSM-5/UV (5wt%) at concentration 25ppm and flow rate 0.5L/min respectively. The result of this study showed that the TiO2/ZSM-5catalyst may be a applicable and hopeful method to removal of ethyl benzene from air flow under UV irradiation.