Abatement of Volatile Organic Compounds Employing a Thermoplastic Nano‐Photocatalyst Layered on a Glass Reactor

Abstract

Industrial development and urbanization increase the emission of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) into the atmosphere, causing environmental and health risks. Several approaches are used for their abatement, including chemical, thermo‐ and photo‐catalytic oxidations, but without fully satisfying results. In this work, a thermoplastic TiO2‐based photo‐catalyst was used as a coating of a glass‐reactor. Solar‐triggered photocatalytic degradation of ethanol, toluene, and acetone (chosen as model VOCs) highlights a better performance of the coated photoreactor rather th the one exhibited by TiO2 nanopowder. The influence of the pollutant flow rate on the photodegradation performance of the system is also investigated, revealing an inverse relationship between degradation and flow rates. The experimental data suggest that our approach provides a cheap and efficient way to boost the abatement of VOCs, useful for further industrial‐scale applications. The morphology and the compositional homogeneity of the nanocomposite coating are addressed through Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy coupled with Energy Dispersive X‐ray Analysis.