Photochemical reactions of a few selected pesticide derivatives and other priority organic pollutants in aqueous suspensions of titanium dioxide

In an attempt to improve our understanding of the basic mechanisms of the degradation of aromatic pollutants, the photocatalysed reactions of a few selected organic compounds, namely 4-bromoaniline, 3-nitroaniline, pentachlorophenol, 1,2,3-trichlorobenzene and diphenylamine has been investigated either in water or in acetonitrile/water mixture in the presence of titanium dioxide and molecular oxygen. An attempt has been made to identify the products formed during the photo-oxidation process through GC-MS analysis technique. A probable mechanism for the formation of the products has been proposed. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.