Photocatalytic Degradation of Commercial Acetaminophen: Evaluation, Modeling, and Scaling-Up of Photoreactors

Abstract

Abstract:In this work, the performance of a pilot-scale solar CPC reactor was evaluated for the degradation of commercial acetaminophen, using TiO 2 P25 as a catalyst. The statistical Taguchi's method was used to estimate the combination of initial pH and catalyst load while tackling the variability of the solar radiation intensity under tropical weather conditions through the estimation of the signal-to-noise ratios (S/N) of the controllable variables. Moreover, a kinetic law that included the explicit dependence on the local volumetric rate of photon absorption (LVRPA) was used. The radiant field was estimated by joining the Six Flux Model (SFM) with a solar emission model based on clarity index (K C ), whereas the mass balance was coupled to the hydrodynamic equations, corresponding to the turbulent regime. For scaling-up purposes, the ratio of the total area-to-total-pollutant volume (A T /V T ) was varied for observing the effect of this parameter on the overall plant performance. The Taguchi's experimental design results showed that the best combination of initial pH and catalyst load was 9 and 0.6 g L −1 , respectively. Also, full-scale plants would require far fewer ratios of A T /V T than for pilot or intermediate-scale ones. This information may be beneficial for reducing assembling costs of photocatalytic reactors scaling-up.

Modelamiento y simulación de reactores fotocatalíticos de película descendente: uso de la dinámica computacional de fluidos (CFD) para análisis del sistema multifásico

“…Este proceso también es aplicable a la remediación ambiental, a la síntesis orgánica, a la producción de hidrógeno, entre otras [3][4][5]. Para llevar a cabo la aplicación a gran escala de esta tecnología con mayor precisión y confiabilidad, se han hecho esfuerzos ingentes en el modelado de los sistemas fotocatalíticos [6][7][8][9]. Es importante realizar un modelamiento del sistema en el que se consideren los fenómenos físicos trascendentales del proceso, especialmente para aquellos reactores con presencia de catalizador particulado no soportado, los cuales presentan la dificultad de que las partículas producen efectos complejos asociados a la dispersión de la luz y a la transferencia fotónica y de masa [1,5].…”

Synthesis and Performance of TiO2/Fly Ash Cenospheres as a Catalytic Film in a Novel Type of Periodic Air-Sparged Photocatalytic Reactor

“…One of the existing variants of this solution is the PROPHIS (parabolic trough-facility for organic photochemical syntheses in sunlight) -parabolic trough reactor that operates under sunlight [23]. Castilla-Caballero et al [24] modelled a similar type of photoreactor as a series of plug flow reactors (PFRs) and continuous stirring tanks (CSTRs), in order to obtain the theoretical knowledge for scaling-up purposes. The reactor developed by Bousselmi et al which cleans water from textile industry dyes is yet another example of this solution [11,12].…”

Efficiency of Combined Processes Coagulation/Solar Photo Fenton in the Treatment of Landfill Leachate

“…Therefore, the combination of coagulation and solar photo-Fenton processes for treatment of leachate is necessary, first to reduce the suspended solids and turbidity of the leachate and second to take advantage of solar radiation, using it as a renewable resource to reduce the operative costs and to degrade recalcitrant organic pollutants by the action of hydroxyl radicals (HO•) and other reactive oxygen species [13][14][15]. The compound parabolic collector (CPC) can efficiently use diffuse and incident solar radiation [16].…”

“…In the literature, studies related to the treatment of landfill leachate by integrating coagulation/ flocculation processes with solar photo Fenton were found [13,15,16]. The results were promising for the removal of organic matter in landfill leachate.…”