Photocatalytic Degradation of Poly(ethylene oxide) and polyacrylamide

Vijayalakshmi, SP and Madras, Giridhar (2006) Photocatalytic Degradation of Poly(ethylene oxide) and polyacrylamide. In: Journal of Applied Polymer Science, 100 (5). pp. 3997-4003.

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Abstract

The photocatalytic degradation of poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) and polyacrylamide (PAM) was investigated using combustion synthesized nano-sized $TiO_2$ catalyst (CSN-$TiO_2$). The degradation was conducted with two different UV lamps of 125 and 80 W. Degradation of PEO was observed in both the cases, whereas PAM degraded only when exposed to lamp of higher power, even in the presence of catalyst. Gel permeation chromatography was used to determine the molecular weight distribution. Continuous distribution kinetics was applied to determine the kinetics of the photodegradation process. The degradation rate coefficients of the polymers in the presence of combustion synthesized $TiO_2$ were higher than the degradation rate coefficients obtained with commercially available $TiO_2$ (Degussa P-25). The enhanced degradation rate of the polymers when catalyzed by CSN-$TiO_2$ can be due to the nano-size, high surface area, and the presence of hydroxyl groups on the surface of the catalyst.

Item Type:	Journal Article
Publication:	Journal of Applied Polymer Science
Publisher:	Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Additional Information:	Copyright of this article belongs to Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Keywords:	photocatalytic;degradation;TiO2;Degussa P-25;combustion synthesized catalyst;lamp power;rate coefficients
Department/Centre:	Division of Mechanical Sciences > Chemical Engineering
Date Deposited:	16 May 2006
Last Modified:	19 Sep 2010 04:26
URI:	http://eprints.iisc.ac.in/id/eprint/6696

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