Application of recyclable TiO2 spheres for photocatalytic degradation of emerging pollutants

Abstract

A solvent-exchange approach for a template-free preparation of spherical TiO2 particles, based on precipitation of hydrous titania from aqueous titanium peroxo complex by organic solvents, has been presented. The photocatalytic TiO2-assisted decomposition of 2-(4-methylphenoxy)ethanol (MPET) has been studied in this work. The intermediate compounds of MPET photodegradation have been determined, and it has been found that the formation of p-cresol as intermediate is an another challenge to tackle in this process. The synthesized TiO2 spheres are recyclable and can be reused for four reaction cycles without losing their activity, while Aeroxide P25 fails to decompose MPET in the third run.