Assessment of pilot-plant scale solar photocatalytic hydrogen generation with multiple approaches: Valorization, water decontamination and disinfection

The main goal of the present study was to explore pilot-scale combination of H2 generation with simultaneous water disinfection or decontamination. Performance of a TiO2–CuO mixture for solar-to-hydrogen (STH) conversion was studied, focusing on treatment optimization (catalyst dose, proportion of semiconductors in the mixture and concentration of the sacrificial agent). Experiments were performed in a 25-L compound parabolic collector (2 m2) solar pilot plant specifically designed for photocatalytic hydrogen generation. The best operating conditions were 100 mg L−1 TiO2–CuO (10:1) with 0.075 M glycerol as the sacrificial agent. The best STH conversion attained was 0.9%. 25 mg L−1 imidacloprid was completely degraded (over 99%). The synergetic effect of anoxic conditions, TiO2:CuO and solar radiation caused a significant reduction (>5 Log) in concentration of E. coli, used as a model waterborne pathogen, in less than 10 min.