Photomineralization of carbofuran by TiO2-supported catalyst

Purification of water using TiO2 as a photocatalyst has attracted a great deal of attention. The technical limitation of using the powder form of TiO2 is the separation of the catalyst. It has been found that TiO2 microcystallites can be firmly affixed to the glass plates without any deactivation. As an example, mineralization of carbofuran was tested. Results indicated that total mineralization can be achieved after 15 h of irradication. This method is a low-cost process and plates can be reused without any deactivation. The major drawback is the requirement of UV irradiation for the water decontamination.