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Design and use of a novel photocatalytic reactor with immobilized titania

Kitsou Eirini

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Summary

A main condition for the development and preservation of life is water. Over the last few decades, the aggravation of water quality has made imperative not only the proper management of its reserves, but also its successful treatment in order to deal with adverse environmental effects and serious human health problems. Thus, it is necessary to find effective methods of environmental remediation of water, resolving pollution and contamination problems.In this context, the study and application of Advanced Oxidation Processes AOPs is of particular interest. Among non-photochemical AOPs, we can distinguish oxidation with O3/OH-, O2/H2O2, Fenton processes, electrochemical oxidation, radiolysis, sonication, etc. Among the photochemical processes we can distinguish oxidation in subcritical and supercritical waters, photolysis with UVV, UV/H2O2, UV/O3, UV/H2O2/O3, photo-Fenton processes and heterogeneous photocatalysis (TiO2/UV-A).This diploma thesis focuses on the potential of photocatalytic technology for water disinfection. In particular, the disinfection of water from the pathogenic bacteria Escherichia coli and Enterococcus faecalis was examined in a pilot photocatalytic reactor. During the heterogeneous photocatalytic inactivation of these bacteria, immobilized titania was used as a catalyst. The operating parameters of the reactor were investigated in applying different liquid levels under solar irradiation and ultraviolet irradiation type A (UV-A). Experiments were conducted in both low and high bacterial concentrations. Detection and bacterial count in the solution were performed using the serial dilution streak plate agar technique. The results are shown in diagrams, in which the inactivation of the bacteria in CFU/mL is plotted against time on a logarithmic scale. Furthermore, the inactivation rate constants were calculated and the concentration of titania in the leachate after disinfection was evaluated.The optimal conditions for a photocatalytic disinfection unit depend on the kinetics of the bacterial degradation, the source and intensity of the irradiation and the level of the liquid treated in the reactor. The results showed that solar irradiation was more effective against artificial UV-A light and shorter liquid heights were disinfected in a greater extend or short periods of time.

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