Modeling of Photo Catalytic Degradation of Chloramphenicol using Full Factorial Design

In this study, photo catalytic degradation of chloramphenicol CAP using TiO2 as photo catalyst in an annular batch photo reactor was carried out. A full factorial design with three experimental factors; pH X1, TiO2 concentration X2 and CAP initial concentration X3 was selected for degradation process. A multiple regression first order model obtained as which shows a functional relationship between the degradation rate of CAP, three experimental factors and the interactions of the factors on the entire process. The results show that the factor pH and TiO2 have strong effect on the process while CAP concentration has weak effect in comparison to other factors, within the range tested. Interaction X2X3 and X1X2X3 also significantly affect the degradation experiment. TiO2 concentration has a positive effect but pH and CAP concentration have negative effect on the entire degradation process. An average of 80.22% of degradation rate of CAP can be achieved from current setup. The regression model is adequate enough with R2 value of 0.9708 and adj-R2 value of 0.9453.