Photoelectrocatalytic degradation of Rose Bengal

An innovative photoelectrode, TiO2/Ti mesh electrode, was prepared by galvanostaticanodisation. The morphology and the crystalline texture of the TiO2 film on mesh electrode were examined by scanning electronic microscopy and Raman spectroscopy respectively. The examination results indicated that the structure and properties of the film depended on anodisation rate, and the anatase was the dominant component under the controlled experimental conditions. Degradation of Rose Bengal (RB) in photocatalytic (PC) and photoelectrocatalytic (PEC) reaction was investigated, the results demonstrated that electric biasing could improve the efficiency of photocatalytic reaction. The measurement results of TOC in photoelectrocatalytic degradation showed that the mineralisation of RB was complete relatively. The comparison between the degradation efficiency of RB in PEC process and that in aqueous TiO2 dispersion was conducted. The results showed that the apparent first-order rate constant of RB degradation in PEC process was larger than that in aqueous dispersion with 0.1%-0.3% TiO2 powder, but was smaller than that in aqueous dispersion with 1.0% TiO2.