Photocatalysis of Adsorbed Catechol on Degussa P25 TiO at the Air-Solid Interface.

Semiconductor photocatalysis with commercial TiO (Degussa P25) has shown significant potential in water treatment of organic pollutants. However, the photoinduced reactions of adsorbed catechol, a phenolic air pollutant from biomass burning and combustion emissions, at the air-solid interface of TiO remain unexplored. Herein we examine the photocatalytic decay of catechol in the presence of water vapor, which acts as an electron acceptor. Experiments under variable cut-off wavelengths of irradiation (λ ≥ 320, 400, and 515 nm) distinguish the mechanistic contribution of a ligand-to-metal charge-transfer (LMCT) complex of surface chemisorbed catechol on TiO. The LMCT complex injects electrons into the conduction band of TiO from the highest occupied molecular orbital of catechol by visible light (≥2.11 eV) excitation. The deconvolution of diffuse reflectance UV-visible spectral bands from LMCT complexes of TiO with catechol, -semiquinone radical, and quinone and the quantification of the evolving gaseous products follow a consecutive kinetic model. CO(g) and CO(g) final oxidation products are monitored by gas chromatography and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy. The apparent quantum efficiency at variable λ are determined for reactant loss (Φ = 0.79 ± 0.19) and product growth Φ = 0.76 ± 0.08). Spectroscopic and electrochemical measurements reveal the energy band diagram for the LMCT of TiO/catechol. Two photocatalytic mechanisms are analyzed based on chemical transformations and environmental relevance.