From Ideal Reactor Concepts to Reality: The Novel Drum Reactor for Photocatalytic Wastewater Treatment

Abstract

This article reports the development of a novel drum photocatalytic reactor for treating dye effluent streams. The parameters for operation including drum rotation speed, light source distance, catalyst loading and H 2 O 2 doping have been investigated using methylene blue as a model pollutant. Effluent can be generated by a number of domestic and industrial sources, including pharmaceutical, oil and gas, agricultural, food and chemical sectors. The work reported here proposes the application of semiconductor photocatalysis as a final polishing step for the removal of hydrocarbons from effluents sources, initial studies have proved effective in removing residual hydrocarbons from the effluent.

Photocatalytic decontamination of phenol and petrochemical wastewater through ZnO/TiO2 decorated on reduced graphene oxide nanocomposite: influential operating factors, mechanism, and electrical energy consumption

“…However, at distances higher than 15 cm, there was a decrease in Ph-degradation rate which indicates the limitation in the light distance from the mixture in photocatalytic systems that in accordance with the ref. 58 .…”

Scale-Up of a Heterogeneous Photocatalytic Degradation Using a Photochemical Rotor–Stator Spinning Disk Reactor

“…As a suitable benchmark reaction, we selected the photocatalytic degradation of organic dyes, which are problematic to remove from wastewater effluents using conventional purification methods (Figure B). − For this application, semiconductors are often used as recoverable heterogeneous photocatalysts; a typical example being titanium dioxide (TiO 2 ) due to its chemical stability, nontoxic nature, low cost, and high photocatalytic activity. , The electron–hole pairs generated upon the excitation of TiO 2 can produce reactive radicals (so-called reactive oxygen species, Figure B), which nonselectively oxidize the organic pollutants, such as methylene blue (MB), to carbon dioxide, water, and various mineralization products. ,− Interestingly, the photodegradation of organic dyes using TiO 2 has been extensively researched over the years and has served as a benchmark reaction for novel reactor designs, ranging from laboratory to intermediate scales and from batch to continuous-flow operation modes. − An additional advantage of this transformation is the possibility of easily assessing the remaining concentration of MB using conventional UV–vis spectroscopical tools. In this work, we report on the ability of the pRS-SDR to process complex aqueous gas–liquid–solid reaction streams without clogging and demonstrate that high productivity rates can be obtained for the TiO 2 -mediated aerobic photodegradation of aqueous MB.…”