Abstract:
The purpose of this study was the photocatalytic degradation of pentachlorophenol (PCP) using a catalyst based
on natural zeolite doped with electrocatalytic species (Ag). The photolytic degradation of PCP was studied for comparison
and in addition, the adsorption capacity of photocatalyst was assessed. The experiments on photocatalysis and photolysis
conducted at two pH values (3 and 6, respectively) revealed that pH has not influenced significantly the overall efficiency
of the two processes. Based on the spectral data, the concentration of PCP was assessed and some aspects of the
degradation processes were discussed. The apparent rate constants were calculated based on the pseudo-first order model.
The kinetics study showed that the PCP degradation by photocatalysis was faster than by photolysis. The UV spectra
analysis of the PCP adsorption indicated that no adsorption process occurred.
Keywords:
photolysis, photocatalysis, sorption, silver doped zeolite, pentachlorophenol
PDF Version