The effect of titanium dioxide nanoparticles and UV irradiation on photocatalytic degradation of Imidaclopride

Imidaclopride is an insecticide widely used for pest control in agriculture around the world. It acts on the central nervous system of insects, while posing lower toxicity to mammals. This is an organic material made of Pyridinium, Dihydroimidazol and Nitramide. This structure poses a threat to the environment and humans. Until now, different types of methods have been used for elimination of this organic pollution. Recently, advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) are presented as a proposed method to remove this organic pollution. Photocatalytic degradation is also used as an efficient method for destruction of organic structures. In this study, the effect of titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanoparticle as a photocatalyst activated by UV irradiation is investigated. The new design of the reactor was prepared with coaxial cylinders in which the inner cylinder is rotated at a constant speed. The reactor worked in two batch and continuous modes. The results show that the UV irradiation is more effective than activated TiO2 nanoparticle, as the designed reactor with UV irradiation eliminated Imidaclopride in less than 2 hours.