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International Journal of Environment Science and Technology
Center for Environment and Energy Research and Studies (CEERS)
ISSN: 1735-1472 EISSN: 1735-1472
Vol. 13, No. 1, 2016, pp. 39-46
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Bioline Code: st16004
Full paper language: English
Document type: Research Article
Document available free of charge
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International Journal of Environment Science and Technology, Vol. 13, No. 1, 2016, pp. 39-46
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Photo-catalytic oxidation of individual and mixture of benzene, toluene and p-xylene
Dhada, I.; Nagar, P.K. & Sharma, M.
Abstract
Photo-catalytic degradation of volatile organic
compounds [VOCs: benzene, toluene and p-xylene (BTX)]
was investigated using a batch reactor having a TiO2
(catalyst)-coated aluminum sheet and a source of UV light
(sunlight or UV lamp). To study the photo-oxidation, experiments
were conducted under the following configurations:
(1) TiO2 (m): microparticle (0.32–3.31 µm) and
sunlight (2) TiO2 (n): nanoparticle (0.80–4.70 nm) and
sunlight, (3) TiO2 (m) and UV lamp and (4) TiO2 (n) and
UV lamp. Degradation of BTX followed first-order decay
for individual compounds. The degradation rate constant in
min-1 cm-2 (coated surface area) was the highest for
configuration (4) (benzene 1.07 9 10-3, toluene
1.36 9 10-3 and p-xylene 2.93 9 10-3) followed by
configuration (2), thus indicating the importance of particle
size of the catalyst in degradation. Degradation of BTX
mixture did not follow first-order decay. Benzene was an
intermediate product of oxidation of toluene. Benzene and
toluene were intermediate products of oxidation of p-xylene.
For degradation of BTX mixture, a mathematical
model was proposed to predict concentrations as a function
of time. Experimental and model results showed similar
trends in BTX degradation. The model accounted for increases
in mass of toluene and benzene due to the degradation
of p-xylene.
Keywords
Photo-degradation; Benzene; Toluene; p- Xylene; Nano-sized TiO2; Volatile organic compounds
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