Application of Photocatalysts and LED Light Sources in Drinking Water Treatment

This study investigates a cross-section of TiO2 compositions for which existing evidence suggests the prospect of improved performance compared to standard Degussa P25. In the context of a program aimed toward a 365 nm LED based photo-reactor, the question is whether a distinctly superior photocatalyst composition for drinking water treatment is now available that would shape design choices. An answer was sought by synthesizing several photocatalysts with reported high reactivity in some context in the literature, and by performing photocatalysts reactivity tests using common pollutants of water system including Natural Organic Matter (NOM) and Emerging Contaminants (ECs) from the pesticide and pharmaceutical classes. 365 nm Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs) were used as the irradiation source. Since LEDs are now available in the UV, we did not examine the TiO2 modifications that bring band gap excitation into the region beyond 400 nm. The results suggest that the choice of the photocatalyst should be best made to fit the reactor design and photocatalyst mounting constraints such as mass transport, reactive surface, and light field. No photocatalyst composition overall, superior for all classes emerged