• Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.181-189
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• 2015

A composite material was tested to eliminate phenol in aqueous solution combining adsorption on activated carbon and photocatalysis with $TiO_2$ in two different ways. A first implementation involved a sequential process with a loop reactor. The aim was to reuse this material as adsorbent several times with in situ photocatalytic regeneration. This process alternated a step of adsorption in the dark and a step of photocatalytic oxidation under UV irradiation with or without $H_2O_2$. Without $H_2O_2$, the composite material was poorly regenerated due to the accumulation of phenol and intermediates in the solution and on $TiO_2$ particles. In presence of $H_2O_2$, the regeneration of the composite material was clearly enhanced. After five consecutive adsorption runs, the amount of eliminated phenol was twice the maximum adsorption capacity. The phenol degradation could be described by a pseudo first-order kinetic model where constants were much higher with $H_2O_2$ (about tenfold) due to additional ${\bullet}OH$ radicals. The second implementation was in a continuous process as with a fixed bed reactor where adsorption and photocatalysis occurred simultaneously. The results were promising as a steady state was reached indicating stabilized behavior for both adsorption and photocatalysis.

• Clean Technology
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.285-292
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• 2022

Adsorption tower systems based on activated carbon adsorption towers have mainly been employed to reduce the emission of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), a major cause of air pollution. However, the activated carbon currently used in these systems has a short lifespan and thus requires frequent replacement. An approach to overcome this shortcoming could be to develop metal oxide photocatalysis-activated carbon composites capable of degrading VOCs by simultaneously utilizing photocatalytic activation and powerful adsorption by activated carbon. TiO₂ has primarily been used as a metal oxide photocatalyst, but it has low economic efficiency due to its high cost. In this study, ZnO particles were synthesized as a photocatalyst due to their relatively low cost. Silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) were deposited on the ZnO surface to compensate for the photocatalytic deactivation that arises from the wide band gap of ZnO. A microfluidic process was used to synthesize ZnO particles and Ag NPs in separate reactors and the solutions were continuously supplied with a pack bed reactor loaded with activated carbon powder. This microfluidic-assisted pack bed reactor efficiently prepared a Ag-ZnO-activated carbon composite for VOC removal. Analysis confirmed that Ag-ZnO photocatalytic particles were successfully deposited on the surface of the activated carbon. Conducting a toluene gasbag test and adsorption breakpoint test demonstrated that the composite had a more efficient removal performance than pure activated carbon. The process proposed in this study efficiently produces photocatalysis-activated carbon composites and may offer the potential for scalable production of VOC removal composites.

• Journal of the Korean Ceramic Society
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• v.45 no.3
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• pp.150-156
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• 2008

Pitch-binded activated carbon fiber(ACF)/$TiO_2$ composite photocatalysts were prepared by Carbon Tetra Chloride (CTC) solvent mixing method with different mixing ratios of anatase to ACF. The result of the textural surface properties demonstrated that there is a slight increase in the Brunauer, Emmett and Teller (BET) surface area of composites with an increase of the amount of ACF. The surfaces structure morphologies of the composites were observed using an Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM). In the XRD patterns for all ACF/$TiO_2$ composites, the diffraction peaks showed the formation of anatase crystallites. The EDX spectra showed the presence of C, O and Si with strong Ti peaks. Most of these samples were richer in carbon and major Ti metal than any other elements. From the photo-decomposition results, the excellent activity of the ACF/$TiO_2$ composites between c/$c_0$ for methylene blue and UV irradiation time could be attributed to both the effects of the photocatalysis of the supported $TiO_2$ and adsorptivity of activated carbon fiber and another carbon derived from pitch.

• Journal of environmental and Sanitary engineering
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.65-74
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• 1997

The purpose of this study was to investigate the removal effect and variation of contaminated water by various water treatment processes using sediment filter, activated carbon, photocatalysis, reverse osmosis, ultra violet sterilizer and ultra filtration. The removal effect of chloride and trace metal was low by activated carbon and ultra filter but high in reverse osmosis. The removal effect of bacteria and E. coli was low by activated carbon and membrane filter system using activated carbon but high in impregnated activated carbon. The removal effect of TCE was low in sand and ultra filter system as compared with activated carbon. Ultra filtration process was effective for purify agricultural water without E.coli. Reverse osmosis was effective to remove heavy metal and activated carbon was effective to remove halogenated organic chemical compound. The flux and the removal effect of COD in spiral wound ultrafilter were higher than the hollow fiber ultrafilter.

• Journal of Wellbeing Management and Applied Psychology
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• v.7 no.3
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• pp.67-72
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• 2024

This study developed a dry composite module-type deodorization facility with Twisting airflow changes and two forms (catalyst, adsorbent) within one module. Experiments were conducted to evaluate the reduction efficiency of odor substances C₈H₇N and C₉H₉N. The device combines UV oxidation using TiO₂, catalytic oxidation using MnO₂, and adsorption using A/C in five different methods. Data analysis of experimental results utilized the statistical package program Python 3.12. The program applied frequency analysis of odor removal efficiency, one-way ANOVA, and post-hoc tests, with statistical significance determined by p-value to ensure reliability and validity of the measurements. Results indicated that the highest removal efficiency of C₈H₇N and C₉H₉N was achieved by the UV+A/C method, suggesting the superior effectiveness and efficiency of the developed device. Combining multiple processes and technologies within one module enhanced odor treatment efficiency compared to using a single method. The device's modularity allows for flexibility in adapting to various sewage treatment scenarios, offering easy maintenance and cost-effective deodorization. This composite reaction module device can apply multiple technologies, such as biofilters, plasma, activated carbon filters, UV-photocatalysis, and electromagnetic-chemical systems. However, this study focused on UV-photocatalysis, catalysts, and activated carbon filters. Ultimately, the research demonstrates the practical applicability of this innovative device in real sewage treatment operations, showing excellent reduction efficiency and effectiveness by integrating UV oxidation, TiO₂ photocatalysis, MnO₂ catalytic oxidation, and A/C adsorption within a modular system.

• Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.85-92
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• 2008

In this present study, we have synthesized Fe-containing AC(activated carbon)/$TiO_2$ composites with titanium (VI) n-butoxide (TNB) as a titanium source to Fe treated AC through an impregnation method. The result of the textural surface properties demonstrates that there is a slight decrease in the BET surface area of composite samples with an increase of the amount of Fe treated. The surface properties of scanning electron microscope (SEM) presented a characterization of a porous texture on the Fe-containing AC/$TiO_2$ composites and homogenous compositions for Fe and titanium dioxide distributed on the sample surfaces. Fe compound peaks and a titanium dioxide structure were observed in the X-ray diffraction patterns for the Fe-containing AC/$TiO_2$ composites. The results of chemical elemental composition for the Fe-containing AC/$TiO_2$ composites showed that most of the spectra for these samples gave stronger peaks for C, O, treated Fe components and Ti metal than that of any other elements. From the photo degradation results for the piggery waste, the Fe-containing AC/$TiO_2$ composites showed an excellent degradation activity for the chemical oxygen demand (COD) due to a photocatalysis of the supported $TiO_2$, radical reaction by Fe species and the adsorptivity and absorptivity of porous carbon.

• Journal of the Korean Crystal Growth and Crystal Technology
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• v.19 no.5
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• pp.268-276
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• 2009

In this study, activated carbon (AC) was treated with ferric ion by a sol-gel method. The compound (Fe-AC) was employed for the preparation of Fe-activated carbon/$TiO_2$, (Fe-AC/$TiO_2$) composites. The prepared Fe-AC/$TiO_2$ composites were characterized with surface properties, structural crystallinity, elemental identification and photocatalytic activity. The SEM results showed that ferric compounds and titanium dioxide were fixed onto the AC surfaces. The XRD results showed that Fe-AC/$TiO_2$ composites mostly contained anatase phase. EDX showed the presence of C, O, and Ti with Fe peaks in all samples. Its photocatalytic degradation effect was evaluated with the degradation behavior of the methylene blue (MB) solution. MB degradation could be attributed to the synergetic effects of adsorption, photo-degradation of $TiO_2$ and photo-Fenton of Fe component. The degradation rate for this photocatalysis was evaluated as a function of the concentration of the dye, the amount of $TiO_2$ and the pH. Photocataytic activity is good at activity pH.

• Journal of the Korean Ceramic Society
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• v.48 no.5
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• pp.433-438
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• 2011

In this study, CdS combined activated carbon/$TiO_2$ (CdS-AC/$TiO_2$) composites were prepared by a sol-gel method to improve the photocatalytic performance of $TiO_2$. These composites were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX) and UV-vis analysis. The photocatalytic activities were examined by the degradation of methylene blue (MB) under visible light irradiation. The photodegradation rate of MB under visible light irradiation reached 90.1% in 120 min. The kinetics of MB degradation was plotted alongside the values calculated from the Langmuir-Hinshelwood equation. The 0.2 CAT sample showed the best photocatalytic activity, which might be due to an increase in the photo-absorption effect by activated carbon and the cooperative effect of CdS.

• Journal of the Korean Ceramic Society
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• v.45 no.11
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• pp.667-674
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• 2008

In this study, we prepared Fe-activated carbon fiber(ACF)/$TiO_2$ composites with titanium (VI) n-butoxide (TNB) as the titanium source for ACF pre-treated with iron compounds through the impregnation method. In terms of textural surface properties, the composites demonstrate a slight decrease in the BET surface area of the samples and an increase in the amount of iron compounds treated. The surface morphology of the Fe-ACF/$TiO_2$ composites was characterized by means of SEM. The composites have a porous texture with homogenous compositions of Fe and titanium dioxide distributed on the sample surfaces. The phase formation and structural transition of the iron compounds and titanium dioxide were observed in X-ray diffraction patterns of the Fe-ACF/$TiO_2$ composites. The chemical composition of the Fe-ACF/$TiO_2$ composites, which was investigated with EDX shows strong peaks for the C, O, Fe and Ti elements. The photo degradation results confirm that the Fe-ACF/$TiO_2$ composites show excellent removal activity for the COD in piggery waste due to photocatalysis of the supported $TiO_2$, radical reaction by Fe species, and the adsorptivity and absorptivity of ACF.

• Analytical Science and Technology
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• v.20 no.4
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• pp.279-288
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• 2007

We have studied a method for the preparation of $ACF/TiO_2$ composites involving the penetrationof titanium n-butoxide (TNB) solution into activated carbon fiber. It was focused on the characterization of $TiO_2$ formed in prorous carbon was which increased with surface functional groups by hydrochloric acid treatment. The conversion of TNB to $TiO_2$ for the acid treatment effect must be important for the preparationof $ACF/TiO_2$ composites. From the characterization of surface properties, both the BET surface area and the total pore volume decreased as the distribution of $TiO_2$ on the activated carbon fiber surfaces after acid treatments.The changes in XRD pattern showed the typical anatase type on $ACF/TiO_2$ composite for the sample named FT, FT1 and FT2 treated with 0.05, 0.1 and 0.5 M, respectively. However, XRD patern of FT3 treated with 0.5M showed mixed amatase-rutile structure. According to the results of SEM micrographs, the titanium complexe particles were irregularly distributed around carbon. And some large clusters were found when an amount of acid treatment increased. The EDX results of $ACF/TiO_2$ composites showed the presence of C, O and P with strong Ti peaks. Finally, the excellent photocatalytic activity of the $ACF/TiO_2$ composites between relative concentration($c/c_o$) of MB (methylene blue) and UV irradiation time could be attributed to the both effects between photocatalysis of the formation of titania complexes and adsorptivity of the activated carbon fiber.