2,4-Dichlorophenol degradation by means of heterogeneous photocatalysis. Comparison between laboratory and pilot plant performance

• Photocatalysis with TiO2 in the laboratory and in a pilot plant scale is compared.
• The effect of clouds in the solar pilot plant is checked.
• Initial pollutant removal is very similar in the pilot plant and in the laboratory.
• TOC removal is faster at the pilot plant than at the laboratory.
• Differences found in both installations are attributed to the light sources.

In order to compare their performance, a 2,4-dichlorophenol (DCP) solution was treated by heterogeneous photocatalysis in a small laboratory set-up irradiated with artificial light and in a solar Compound Parabolic Collectors pilot plant. DCP and TiO2 concentration were varied to check possible different behaviors. DCP removal and TOC mineralization were monitored and fitted to a semiempiric model. DCP degradation rates show similar values in both installations, if comparison is based on entering UV photon flux. However, lab installation mineralizes lower amounts of TOC for the same accumulated UV photons, probably due to the different radiation intensity supplied in each set-up. Finally, some actinometric experiments to characterize the solar pilot plant are also presented, analyzing the collector and clouds effect.