International Journal of Photoenergy 
Volume 4 (2002), Issue 4, Pages 141-146
doi:10.1155/S1110662X02000168

Comparison of the photoactivities of two commercial titanium dioxide powders in the degradation of 1,4-dioxane

M. Mehrvar,1 W. A. Anderson,2 and M. Moo-Young2

 1Department of Chemistry, Biology and Chemical Engineering, Ryerson University, Ontario, Toronto M5B 2K3, Canada
2Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario, N2L 3G1, Canada

Abstract

Two different commercial photocatalysts, Degussa P25 and Hombikat UV 100, were used to degrade 1,4-dioxane photocatalytically in an annular slurry photoreactor. The optimum photocatalyst loading for Degussa P25 was found to be 1.5 g L-1 while for Hombikat UV 100 was between 3.0−4.0 g L-1. The photoactivity of Degussa P25 is higher than that of Hombikat at lower photocatalyst loadings whereas it is lower at higher photocatalyst loadings. This was found both experimentally and also by mathematical modeling of the radiation within the photoreactor zone. The photoactivity of UV 100 titanium dioxide was found to be twice that of Degussa P25 at optimum loadings.