High performance fluidized bed photoreactor for ethylene decomposition

Abstract Removal of C2H4 in the air was carried out in the continuous flow reactor with the photocatalytic bed (expanded polystyrene spheres coated by TiO2 or SiO2/TiO2) under irradiation of UV light. Continuous flow of a gas stream through the reactor was realised at the static bed and under bed fluidization. The required flow of a gas stream through the reactor for bed fluidisation was 500–700 ml/min, whereas for the static bed the flow rate of 20 ml/min was used. Fluidized bed reactor appeared to be much more efficient in ethylene removal than that with the stationary bed. It was caused by the increased speed of C2H4 mass transfer to the photocatalyst surface and better utilization of the incident UV light. In the fluidized bed reactor calculated rate of C2H4 degradation was around 10 μg/min whereas in the stationary state 1.2 μg/min only.