Titania―Acrylic Coil Reactor for Photocatalytic Water Purification and Sterilization

A titania−acrylic composite reactor was constructed with a coil geometry. The presence of multiple titania layers within the reactor increases the titania surface area while making maximum use of the illumination provided. Both compact fluorescent blacklight (CFL) and ultraviolet light emitting diodes (LEDs) were used as illumination sources. An external pump was used to recirculate 650−800 mL of water containing organic, metallic, or bacterial contamination through the coil reactor. Complete purification of the water was achieved within 300 min with 10 ppm methylene blue, 10 ppm methyl orange, 20 ppm Pb2+, and 2200 colony forming units per milliliter (CFU/mL) of E. coli respectively using the CFL source. The effectiveness, low cost, durability, ruggedness, and energy efficiency of this reactor are advantageous for both portable and fixed-base applications.