title: Photocatalytic solar tower reactor for the elimination of a low concentration of VOCs.
abstract: We developed a photocatalytic solar tower reactor for the elimination of low concentrations of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) typically emitted from small industrial establishments. The photocatalytic system can be installed in a narrow space, as the reactor is cylindrical-shaped. The photocatalytic reactor was placed vertically in the center of a cylindrical scattering mirror, and this vertical reactor was irradiated with scattered sunlight generated by the scattering mirror. About 5 ppm toluene vapor, used as representative VOC, was continuously photodegraded and converted to CO2 almost stoichiometrically under sunny conditions. Toluene removal depended only on the intensity of sunlight. The performance of the solar tower reactor did not decrease with half a year of operation, and the average toluene removal was 36% within this period.
authors.affiliation: Research Institute for Environmental Management Technology, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, 16-1 Onogawa, Tsukuba 305-8569, Japan. n-negishi@aist.go.jp.
authors.forename: Nobuaki
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Negishi
authors.affiliation: Research Institute for Environmental Management Technology, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, 16-1 Onogawa, Tsukuba 305-8569, Japan.
authors.forename: Taizo
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Sano
mesh_terms: D016902:Air Pollution, Indoor / Q000517:prevention & control; D002245:Carbon Dioxide / Q000737:chemistry*; D002384:Catalysis; D004867:Equipment Design / Q000379:methods; D010782:Photolysis; D012993:Solar Energy; D014050:Toluene / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D055549:Volatile Organic Compounds / Q000302:isolation & purification*
chemical_list: D055549:Volatile Organic Compounds; D002245:Carbon Dioxide; D014050:Toluene