Photodegradation of taste and odor compounds in water in the presence of immobilized TiO2-SiO2 photocatalysts

Disinfection by ultraviolet (UV) radiation is a growing trend in public water treatment systems because of its effectiveness with respect to inactivation of protozoa and other pathogenic microorganisms. However, removal of different classes of organic compounds, including taste and odor compounds in water is not effective with UV irradiation. In this study, a novel TiO2-based immobilized photocatalyst is developed to enhance the UV photodegradation of two of the major taste and odor compounds, 2-methylisoborneol (MIB) and Geosmin (GSM) in water. Evonik (formerly Degussa) P-25 powder-modified TiO2 was immobilized on glass slides using TiO2-SiO2 sol-gel mixture as the binder and calcined at 500 °C. Several catalyst films with different Si amounts were synthesized and characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), infrared spectroscopy (IR), diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS), photoluminescence spectroscopy (PL) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Photocatalytic degradation of MIB and GSM was investigated by irradiating aqueous solutions under UV-A light (350 nm). Generation of hydroxyl radicals (OH) was also assessed to evaluate the activity of the photocatalyst films. Catalyst films with surface ratios of Ti:Si ≈6 showed similar degradations rates but better robustness compared to immobilized P25 films.