Kinetics of photocatalytic degradation of textile dye reactive red 2

Abstract

The photocatalytic degradation of the dye, reactive red 2 has been investigated in aqueous heterogenous solution containing TiO₂ as photocatalyst in a batch reactor. The disappearance of the dye follows approximately pseudo-first order kinetics according to the Langmuir-Hinshelwood model. The addition of optimal amount of hydrogen peroxide and potassium persulphate enhances the degradation rate of the dye. The presence of sodium carbonate and sodium chloride hinders the photocatalytic degradation. TiO₂ has been experimentally found to be highly efficient photocatalyst in the degradation of textile dyes and hence there is a great potential in the treatment of effluents from textile industries by photocatalytic degradation technique.