Kinetics of the photocatalytic total oxidation of different alkanes and alkenes on TiO2 powder

Although photocatalyzed total oxidation reaction of hydrocarbon species has been discussed in the literature, most of these studies were performed to obtain an appropriate reaction mechanism. Studies on the kinetics of this type of reaction are rare. Using titanium dioxide as the photo catalyst, the kinetics of the total oxidation of methane, ethane, ethene, as well as propene, have been investigated using a continuous-stirred tank reactor. In the experiments, the hydrocarbon concentrations, the oxygen concentration, and the irradiation intensity were varied. The results obtained are evaluated on the basis of a kinetic model to derive rate equations which can be used for reactor design.