Photocatalytic Destruction of Non-Ionic Surfactant Triton X-100 with Hydrogen Peroxide in Water in the Reactors with Immobilized TiO2

The photocatalytic destruction of organic substances is an efficient method for the production of high-quality purified water for various applications. For photocatalytic purposes, titania is most widely studied due to its low cost, availability, untoxicity, and stable chemical structure. The combined application of a photocatalyst and hydrogen peroxide increases the degree of ecotoxicants destruction to CO₂, H₂O, and inorganic ions (mineralization) and shortens the reaction time to decrease the water treatment expenditures. Photocatalytic destruction kinetics was studied for a non-ionic surfactant, namely, octylphenol ethoxylate (Triton X-100) with hydrogen peroxide in an aqueous medium in reactors with immobilized TiO₂. The conditions for achieving a high degree of mineralization of Triton X-100 (84–88% for 4–5 h at C₀ = 50 mg/dm³) were established in the H₂O₂/TiO₂/UV (λ = 254 nm) system in a reactor with TiO₂ immobilized on a large-pore ceramic support alongside with its essential advantages as compared to the TiO₂/UV system, where the maximum degree of mineralization of Triton X-100 was 2.5 times lower. The possibility of attaining a high degree of mineralization with hydrogen peroxide for Triton X-100 (up to 92% on TOC basis of 2 h) was demonstrated in a quartz reactor with a Degussa P-25 TiO₂ film on its inner surface at the external irradiation mode (λ = 254 nm) without additional TiO₂ powder.