Fabrication of an inexpensive and high efficiency microphotoreactor using CO2 laser technique for photocatalytic water treatment applications

In this study, a micro-photoreactor with catalyst-immobilized micro-channels was designed and fabricated using CO2 laser as a simple and inexpensive technique. The micro-photoreactor is composed of an array of micro-channels, a quartz plate, and an array of UV-LEDs. The micro-channels with the dimension of 400 µm width, 50 µm depth, and 80 cm length were inscribed on a flat plate of poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA). The illuminated specific surface area for the designed micro-reactor was calculated to be 25000 m(-1). To examine the performance of miniaturized photoreactor, the photocatalytic degradation of 4-Nitrophenol as a refractory pollutant was investigated. The effects of operational variables on the performance of micro-photoreactor were studied. Higher photocatalytic degradation is obtained for low flow rates, high light intensities, long micro-channels lengths, and low inlet concentrations. Also, the performance of micro-photoreactor was examined in the presence of different types of TiO2 catalysts with an average particle size between 5 and 27 nm (such as P25, PC500, Merck, and UV100) and textile dyes with different chemical structures (such as Acid Orange 7, Acid Violet 19, Basic Red 46, Methyl Orange, and Malachite Green). Finally, the reusability of miniaturized photoreactor was evaluated and the results showed satisfactory stability and reusability for the designed micro-reactor in the photocatalytic degradation of organic pollutants.