Photocatalytic Reactors Design and Operating Parameters on the Wastewater Organic Pollutants Removal

Industrial and municipal wastewater include various organic pollutants such as dyes, pesticides, pharmaceutical products, and aromatic compounds. Due to their health and environmental risks, the removal of organic pollutants from wastewater is a significant subject. Photocatalytic technology has become one of the most efficiently used application for treating wastewater due to its simple operation, high economic benefits and potential in eliminating secondary pollution. The photocatalytic activity depends on the morphology, surface area and band gap energy of the photocatalysts. Ion doping and immobilization on the support surface are the efficient ways to enhance the photocatalytic degradation efficiency. The photocatalytic reactors design certainly plays a critical role in the photocatalytic applications. In this chapter, the recent developments on photocatalytic reactors are introduced, and the commonly used ones are illustrated. The reaction mechanisms and stoichiometry of the reactants within the reactor is presented in detail. The efficiency of photocatalytic process is mainly governed by the operating parameters of pH, temperature, pollutant concentration, photocatalyst dosage, oxidants and coexisting inorganic ions. This chapter provides an overview to these parameters and presents a perspective to the photoreactor concept and process parameters.