Sonophotocatalytic degradation of 4-chlorophenol using Bi2O3/TiZrO4 as a visible light responsive photocatalyst

Abstract

The oxidative degradation of 4-chlorophenol (4-CP) by sonolytic, photocatalytic and sonophotocatalytic processes was studied in aqueous solutions using Bi2O3/TiZrO4 as a visible light driven photocatalyst and with 20kHz ultrasound. The results reveal that Bi2O3/TiZrO4 is an efficient photocatalyst capable of degrading 4-CP by both photocatalytic and sonophotocatalytic processes. During the sonolysis of 4-CP solutions, HPLC results showed the formation of a number of intermediate products, whereas, no such intermediates were formed during the sonophotocatalytic degradation of 4-CP. TOC results showed rapid mineralization of 4-CP during the sonophotocatalytic degradation process, relative to t..