Radical intermediates in photoinduced reactions on TiO2 (an EPR spin trapping study)

The radical intermediates formed upon UVA irradiation of titanium dioxide suspensions in aqueous and non-aqueous environments were investigated applying the EPR spin trapping technique. The results showed that the generation of reactive species and their consecutive reactions are influenced by the solvent properties (e.g., polarity, solubility of molecular oxygen, rate constant for the reaction of hydroxyl radicals with the solvent). The formation of hydroxyl radicals, evidenced as the corresponding spin-adducts, dominated in the irradiated TiO₂ aqueous suspensions. The addition of ¹⁷O-enriched water caused changes in the EPR spectra reflecting the interaction of an unpaired electron with the ¹⁷O nucleus. The photoexcitation of TiO₂ in non-aqueous solvents (dimethylsulfoxide, acetonitrile, methanol and ethanol) in the presence of 5,5-dimethyl-1-pyrroline N-oxide spin trap displayed a stabilization of the superoxide radical anions generated via electron transfer reaction to molecular oxygen, and various oxygen- and carbon-centered radicals from the solvents were generated. The character and origin of the carbon-centered spin-adducts was confirmed using nitroso spin trapping agents.

Chemiluminescence study of active oxygen species produced by TiO2 photocatalytic reaction

Two chemiluminescence approaches have been used for study of active oxygen species produced by the TiO2 photocatalytic reaction. One is based on flow injection analysis (FIA)-luminol chemiluminescence (CL); another is a time-resolved CL method. In the FIA-CL experiment, an UV-illuminated TiO2 suspension and water were passed into a mixing cell by two separate flow lines. Luminol solution was injected into the water flow line at different times. The injected luminol reacted with active oxygen species generated by the TiO2 photocatalytic reaction in a mixing coil and produced CL. It was found that the maximum CL was detected at the first injection of luminol. CL intensity decreased with time of injection. When the luminol was injected after 5 min, the CL intensity was almost unchanged. Addition of scavengers of active oxygen species indicated that the CL produced early in the 5 min was caused by O2- and H2O2, while CL after 5 min was only from H2O2. In the time-resolved CL, the third harmonic wavelength of Nd:YAG laser (355 nm) was used as a UV light source, and CL was detected by a PMT and recorded in a millisecond time scale using a digital oscilloscope. It was found that CL induced by the photocatalytic reaction increased with concentration of the TiO2 suspension. Scavengers of active oxygen species of *OH, O2- and H2O2 were added to study the involvement of the active oxygen species.