Kinetic Studies for Photocatalytic Degradation of Eosin B on a Thin Film of Titanium Dioxide

A semiconductor photocatalytic process has been studied extensively in recent years because of its intriguing advantages in environmental remediation. In this study, a two-phase swirl-flow monolithic-type reactor is used to study the kinetics of photocatalytic degradation of Eosin B for two different operating configurations: substrate-to-catalyst and liquid-to-catalyst illumination modes. True kinetic rate constants were determined as a function of the light intensity and catalyst layer thickness after correcting for mass-transfer limitation. In addition, the effects of several other parameters such as pH, dissolved oxygen, and temperature were examined. This new reactor appears to be an attractive choice for kinetic studies of heterogeneous photocatalysis.