Photocatalytic degradation using design of experiments: A review and example of the Congo red degradation

The use of chemometric methods such as response surface methodology (RSM) based on statistical design of experiments (DOEs) is becoming increasingly widespread in several sciences such as analytical chemistry, engineering and environmental chemistry. Applied catalysis, is certainly not the exception. It is clear that photocatalytic processes mated with chemometric experimental design play a crucial role in the ability of reaching the optimum of the catalytic reactions. The present article reviews the major applications of RSM in modern experimental design combined with photocatalytic degradation processes. Moreover, the theoretical principles and designs that enable to obtain a polynomial regression equation, which expresses the influence of process parameters on the response are thoroughly discussed. An original experimental work, the photocatalytic degradation of the dye Congo red (CR) using TiO2 suspensions and H2O2, in natural surface water (river water) is comprehensively described as a case study, in order to provide sufficient guidelines to deal with this subject, in a rational and integrated way.