Vesna N. Despotović

Photocatalytic degradation of selected herbicides in aqueous suspensions of doped titania under visible light irradiation

The aim of this work was to study the efficiency of Fe- and N-doped titania suspensions in the photocatalytic degradation of the herbicides RS-2-(4-chloro-o-tolyloxy)propionic acid (mecoprop, MCPP), (4-chloro-2-methylphenoxy)acetic acid (MCPA), and 3,6-dichloropyridine-2-carboxylic acid (clopyralid, CP) under the visible light (lambda > or = 400 nm) irradiation. The obtained results were compared with those of the corresponding undoped TiO(2) (rutile/anatase) and of the most frequently used TiO(2) Degussa P25. Computational modeling procedures were used to optimize geometry and molecular electrostatic potentials of MCPP, MCPA and CP and discuss the obtained results. The results indicate that the efficiency of photocatalytic degradation is greatly influenced by the molecular structure of the compound. Lowering of the band gap of titanium dioxide by doping is not always favorable for increasing photocatalytic efficiency of degradation.

Photocatalytic degradation of mecoprop and clopyralid in aqueous suspensions of nanostructured N-doped TiO2.

The work describes a study of the oxidation power of N-doped and undoped anatase TiO2, as well as TiO2 Degussa P25 suspensions for photocatalytic degradation of the herbicides RS-2-(4-chloro-o-tolyloxy)propionic acid (mecoprop) and 3,6-dichloro-pyridine-2-carboxylic acid (clopyralid) using visible and UV light. Undoped nanostructured TiO2 powder in the form of anatase was prepared by a sol-gel route. The synthesized TiO2, as well as TiO2 Degussa P25 powder, were modified with urea to introduce nitrogen into the structure. N-doped TiO2 appeared to be somewhat more efficient than the starting TiO2 (anatase) powder when visible light was used for mecoprop degradation. N-doped TiO2 Degussa P25 was also slightly more efficient than TiO2 Degussa P25. However, under the same experimental conditions, no degradation of clopyralid was observed in the presence of any of the mentioned catalysts. When the kinetics of mecoprop degradation was studied using UV light, more efficient were the undoped powders, while in the case of clopyralid, N-doped TiO2 Degussa P25 powder was most efficient, which is probably a consequence of the difference in the molecular structure of the two herbicides.

Photocatalytic degradation of the herbicide clomazone in natural water using TiO2: kinetics, mechanism, and toxicity of degradation products.

The photocatalytic degradation of the herbicide clomazone (0.05mM) in aqueous suspensions of TiO2 Degussa P25 was examined as a function of the different operational parameters. The optimum concentration of the catalyst was found to be 0.50mgmL(-1) under UV light at the pH 10.3. In the first stage of the reaction, the photocatalytic degradation of clomazone followed the pseudo-first order kinetics, with and the heterogeneous catalysis proceeding via OH radicals. The results also showed that the disappearance of clomazone led to the formation of a number of organic intermediates and ionic byproducts, whereas its complete mineralization occurred after about 55min. Tentative photodegradation pathways were proposed and discussed. A comparison of the evolution of toxicity that was evaluated in vitro in rat hepatoma (H-4-II-E) and human fetal lung (MRC-5) cell lines with the degradation kinetics indicates that the irradiation contributed to the decrease of the toxicity of the mixture that is no longer dominated by the parent compound. The study also encompassed the effect of the quality of natural water on the rate of removal of clomazone.

Mechanism of clomazone photocatalytic degradation: hydroxyl radical, electron and hole scavengers

The role of •OH radicals (adsorbed and free) and valence band holes as primary oxidants in the photodegradation of clomazone in UV-illuminated TiO2 suspension was investigated. Significant inhibition of the photodegradation of clomazone in the presence of NaI (hole and surface •OH scavenger) suggesting that the surface degradation mechanism played a crucial role rather than the bulk degradation pathway. Also, less impact of tert-butanol on the photodegradation indicated that free •OH radicals were not majorly involved in the photodegradation process of clomazone. On the other hand, when the surface is covered by fluoride, it was concluded that the kinetic pathways for reaction with subsurface holes and with free •OH in solution are predominant. The LC–ESI–MS/MS analyses of the irradiated solution of clomazone in the presence of NaF indicated formation of the same intermediates when free •OH played a crucial role in mechanism instead of surface •OH radicals. Besides, molecular oxygen, H2O2, KBrO3, and (NH4)2S2O8 are generally used as electron scavengers in heterogeneous photocatalytic reactions. It was found that the addition of electron scavengers such as H2O2, KBrO3, and (NH4)2S2O8 has resulted in higher pollutant degradation rate compared to molecular oxygen alone.

Photocatalytic Degradation of Herbicide Quinmerac in Various Types of Natural Water

The efficiency of the photocatalytic degradation of the herbicide quinmerac in aqueous TiO2 suspensions was examined as a function of the type of light source, TiO2 loading, pH, temperature, electron acceptors, and hydroxyl radical (•OH) scavenger. The optimum loading of catalyst was found to be 0.25 mg mL−1 under UV light at pH 7.2, with the apparent activation energy of the reaction being 13.7 kJ mol−1. In the first stage of the reaction, the photocatalytic degradation of quinmerac (50 μM) followed approximately a pseudo-first order kinetics. The most efficient electron acceptor appeared to be H2O2 along with molecular oxygen. By studying the effect of ethanol as an •OH scavenger, it was shown that the heterogeneous catalysis takes place mainly via •OH. The results also showed that the disappearance of quinmerac led to the formation of a number of organic intermediates and ionic byproducts, whereas its complete mineralization occurred in about 120 min. The reaction intermediates (7-chloro-3-methylquinoline-5,8-dione, three isomeric phenols hydroxy-7-chloro-3-methylquinoline-8-carboxylic acids, and 7-chloro-3-(hydroxymethyl)quinoline-8-carboxylic acid) were identified and the kinetics of their appearance/disappearance was followed by LC–ESI–MS/MS. Tentative photodegradation pathways were proposed and discussed. The study also encompassed the effect of quality of natural water on the rate of removal of quinmerac.

Photocatalytic decomposition of selected biologically active compounds in environmental waters using TiO2/polyaniline nanocomposites: Kinetics, toxicity and intermediates assessment

A comprehensive study of the removal of selected biologically active compounds (pharmaceuticals and pesticides) from different water types was conducted using bare TiO2 nanoparticles and TiO2/polyaniline (TP-50, TP-100, and TP-150) nanocomposite powders. In order to investigate how molecular structure of the substrate influences the rate of its removal, we compared degradation efficiency of the initial substrates and degree of mineralization for the active components of pharmaceuticals (propranolol, and amitriptyline) and pesticides (sulcotrione, and clomazone) in double distilled (DDW) and environmental waters. The results indicate that the efficiency of photocatalytic degradation of propranolol and amitriptyline was higher in environmental waters: rivers (Danube, Tisa, and Begej) and lakes (Moharač, and Sot) in comparison with DDW. On the contrary, degradation efficacy of sulcotrione and clomazone was lower in environmental waters. Further, of the all catalysts applied, bare TiO2 and TP-100 were found to be most effective in the mineralization of propranolol and amitriptyline, respectively, while TP-150 appeared to be the most efficient in terms of sulcotrione and clomazone mineralization. Also, there was no significant toxicity observed after the irradiation of pharmaceuticals or pesticides solutions using appropriate catalysts on rat hepatoma (H-4-II-E), mouse neuroblastoma (Neuro-2a), human colon adenocarcinoma (HT-29), and human fetal lung (MRC-5) cell lines. Subsequently, detection and identification of the formed intermediates in the case of sulcotrione photocatalytic degradation using bare TiO2 and TP-150 showed slightly different pathways of degradation. Furthermore, tentative pathways of sulcotrione photocatalytic degradation were proposed and discussed.

Comparative Assessment of the Photocatalytic Efficiency of TiO2 Wackherr in the Removal of Clopyralid from Various Types of Water

Many pyridine derivatives have found widespread application as herbicides. Because of their frequent use, chemical stability and resistance to biodegradation, they are encountered in waste waters, and, due to their hazardous effects on ecosystems and human health, their removal is imperative (Stapleton et al., 2006). With this in mind, we have recently paid significant attention to the study of the model compounds (Abramovic et al., 2003; Abramovic et al., 2004a, 2004b) and pyridine containing pesticides (Abramovic et al., 2007; Sojic et al., 2009; Abramovic & Sojic, 2010; Abramovic et al., 2010; Guzsvany et al., 2010; Sojic et al., 2010a, 2010b; Banic et al., 2011).