The continuous-flow photocatalytic oxidation of Volatile Organic Compounds from indoor air is a hot topic in environmental pollution control research. The widely investigated reactor design in such application is the annular-type TiO2-coated optical fiber, consisting of a solid light-guiding core, and supported photocatalyst. This design is well documented to suffer from multiple performance and economic shortcomings that can be linked to major photocatalyst and design deficiencies.
In this project, we propose radical technology enhancement modification strategies including the integration a ternary TiO2-CeO2 -CuO composite photocatalyst to allow more efficient harnessing of low energy radiation and utilize the microscale hollow core fiber reactor concept to provide additional reaction confinement, as well as handling flexibility. We tackle this research challenge with a comprehensive experimental and computational design plan to lay a foundation of how our proposed technology works and can be initially deployed.
