The enhancement of WO3-catalyzed photodegradation of organic substances utilizing the redox cycle of copper ions
WO3 is a visible-light-responsive photocatalyst and an n-type semiconductor photocatalyst, but its photocatalytic activity toward organic substances is low. We utilized several transition metal ions as redox mediators in attempts to improve the photoactivity of WO3, and a drastic improvement was obs...
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Published in | Applied catalysis. B, Environmental Vol. 84; no. 1-2; pp. 42 - 47 |
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Main Authors | , , , , , , |
Format | Journal Article |
Language | English |
Published |
Amsterdam
Elsevier B.V
25.10.2008
Elsevier |
Subjects | |
Online Access | Get full text |
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Summary: | WO3 is a visible-light-responsive photocatalyst and an n-type semiconductor photocatalyst, but its photocatalytic activity toward organic substances is low. We utilized several transition metal ions as redox mediators in attempts to improve the photoactivity of WO3, and a drastic improvement was observed only when Cu2+ ions were utilized for WO3-catalyzed photodegradation of organic substances. More specifically, the CO2 generation rates for the photodegradation of formaldehyde and methanol in the presence of Cu2+ ions were about 1000 and 150 times as high, respectively, as the rates in the absence of Cu2+ ions. We confirmed that Cu2+ was reduced to Cu+ through the transfer of a photoexcited electron from WO3 and that Cu+ was easily re-oxidized to Cu2+ by oxygen in air. This redox cycle could assist in the reduction of oxygen in the photocatalytic reaction, and the reaction was particularly efficient when Cu2+ was introduced to the system as a CuCl2 solution. Photodegradation was achieved with a WO3 photoelectrode in a two-compartment cell in which the Cu2+ solution was separated from wastewater containing organic substances by an ion-exchangeable membrane, simulating practical use. The anodic photocurrent generated by the photodegradation of organic substances was observed at the WO3 photoelectrode without applying any external bias. |
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Bibliography: | ObjectType-Article-2 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-1 content type line 23 |
ISSN: | 0926-3373 1873-3883 |
DOI: | 10.1016/j.apcatb.2008.03.002 |