Modelling studies for photocatalytic degradation of organic dyes using TiO2 nanofibers

• Published in: Environmental science and pollution research international Vol. 25; no. 21; pp. 20466 - 20472
• Main Authors: Singh, Narendra, Rana, Mohit Singh, Gupta, Raju Kumar
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer Berlin Heidelberg 01-07-2018; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Aquatic Pollution; Atmospheric Protection/Air Quality Control/Air Pollution; Catalysis; Catalysts; Catalytic activity; Computer simulation; Dynamic models; Earth and Environmental Science; Ecotoxicology; Environment; Environmental Chemistry; Environmental Health; Environmental science; Irradiance; Light; Light intensity; Luminous intensity; Modelling; Nanofibers; Nitrophenol; Oxidation; Photocatalysis; Photodegradation; Reaction kinetics; Titanium dioxide; Ultraviolet radiation; Waste Water Technology; Water Management; Water Pollution Control; Water: From Pollution to Purification; Photocatalytic degradation; Dynamic modelling; Simulation; Nanofibers
• ISSN: 0944-1344; 1614-7499
• DOI: 10.1007/s11356-017-0053-8

In this work, modelling of the photocatalytic degradation of para-nitrophenol (PNP) using synthesized electrospun TiO
2
nanofibers under UV light illumination is reported. A dynamic model was developed in order to understand the behaviour of operating parameters, i.e. light intensity and catalyst loading on the photocatalytic activity. This model was simulated and analysed for both TiO
2
solid nanofibers and TiO
2
hollow nanofibers, applied as photocatalysts in the Langmuir–Hinshelwood kinetic framework. The entire photocatalytic degradation rate follows pseudo-first-order kinetics. The simulated results obtained from the developed model are in good agreement with the experimental results. At a catalyst loading of 1.0 mg mL
−1
, better respective degradation rates were achieved at UV light irradiance of 4 mW cm
−2
, for both the TiO
2
solid and hollow nanofibers. However, it was also observed that TiO
2
hollow nanofibers have a higher adsorption rate than that of TiO
2
solid nanofibers resulting in a higher photocatalytic degradation rate of PNP.