Modelling the photocatalytic oxidation of methane and other air pollutants for applications in ventilation systems
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| Format: | Preprint |
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2026
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| _version_ | 1866914593730723840 |
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| author | Tomlinson, Samuel D. Tsopelakou, Aliki Marina Onn, Tzia Ming Barrett, Steven R. H. Boies, Adam M. Fitzgerald, Shaun |
| author_facet | Tomlinson, Samuel D. Tsopelakou, Aliki Marina Onn, Tzia Ming Barrett, Steven R. H. Boies, Adam M. Fitzgerald, Shaun |
| contents | Photocatalytic oxidation (PCO) is a promising strategy for indoor air purification and outdoor pollutant abatement, potentially offering treatment for climate- and health-relevant pollutants such as methane (CH$_4$), nitrogen oxides (NO$_\text{x}$) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). In this work, we present experiments evaluating the PCO of CH$_4$ (2 to 10 ppm) under varying UV-C light intensities (4 to 59 W/m$^2$), using titanium dioxide (TiO$_2$) as the photocatalyst. At 2 ppm CH$_4$, TiO$_2$ achieves a maximum conversion efficiency of 24.4% and a maximum apparent quantum yield of $0.013$\% over the tested UV-C light intensities, demonstrating activity at environmentally relevant concentrations. We develop a model to interpret the experimental results and assess the potential of PCO for ventilation applications. The model is validated against our CH$_4$ data and literature results for formaldehyde (HCHO) and NO$_\text{x}$. While laboratory-scale configurations achieve high conversions (e.g., 24.4% for CH$_4$), ventilation-scale performance is predicted to be limited by thin concentration boundary layers and short residence times, with conversion efficiencies dropping to around $0.017$%. Finally, we estimate the climate impact of CH$_4$ removal in terms of CO$_2$e emission rates, demonstrating that TiO$_2$-based PCO in ventilation applications can yield a net climate benefit (i.e., a net-negative CO$_2$e emissions rate) when the modelled CO$_2$e removal rate exceeds the emissions from catalyst material production and UV operation, particularly when pre-existing UV-C irradiation is leveraged. |
| format | Preprint |
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arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2605_23999 |
| institution | arXiv |
| publishDate | 2026 |
| record_format | arxiv |
| spellingShingle | Modelling the photocatalytic oxidation of methane and other air pollutants for applications in ventilation systems Tomlinson, Samuel D. Tsopelakou, Aliki Marina Onn, Tzia Ming Barrett, Steven R. H. Boies, Adam M. Fitzgerald, Shaun Chemical Physics Materials Science Photocatalytic oxidation (PCO) is a promising strategy for indoor air purification and outdoor pollutant abatement, potentially offering treatment for climate- and health-relevant pollutants such as methane (CH$_4$), nitrogen oxides (NO$_\text{x}$) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). In this work, we present experiments evaluating the PCO of CH$_4$ (2 to 10 ppm) under varying UV-C light intensities (4 to 59 W/m$^2$), using titanium dioxide (TiO$_2$) as the photocatalyst. At 2 ppm CH$_4$, TiO$_2$ achieves a maximum conversion efficiency of 24.4% and a maximum apparent quantum yield of $0.013$\% over the tested UV-C light intensities, demonstrating activity at environmentally relevant concentrations. We develop a model to interpret the experimental results and assess the potential of PCO for ventilation applications. The model is validated against our CH$_4$ data and literature results for formaldehyde (HCHO) and NO$_\text{x}$. While laboratory-scale configurations achieve high conversions (e.g., 24.4% for CH$_4$), ventilation-scale performance is predicted to be limited by thin concentration boundary layers and short residence times, with conversion efficiencies dropping to around $0.017$%. Finally, we estimate the climate impact of CH$_4$ removal in terms of CO$_2$e emission rates, demonstrating that TiO$_2$-based PCO in ventilation applications can yield a net climate benefit (i.e., a net-negative CO$_2$e emissions rate) when the modelled CO$_2$e removal rate exceeds the emissions from catalyst material production and UV operation, particularly when pre-existing UV-C irradiation is leveraged. |
| title | Modelling the photocatalytic oxidation of methane and other air pollutants for applications in ventilation systems |
| topic | Chemical Physics Materials Science |
| url | https://arxiv.org/abs/2605.23999 |