Kinetic modeling of hydrogen generation over nano-Cu(s)/TiO2 catalyst through photoreforming of alcohols

The production of hydrogen by photocatalytic reforming of methanol and glycerol was investigated usingmetal copper-modified TiO2nanoparticles, prepared “in situ” by reduction of cupric ions. A modelinginvestigation was performed through the development of a simplified kinetic model taking into accountthe mass balance equations for the main reactive species involved in the photocatalytic system. Thekinetic model was tested to predict hydrogen generation rates for experimental runs carried out at dif-ferent initial concentrations of sacrificial agent (methanol and glycerol) and at varying photocatalystload.The modeling investigation allowed to estimate for the first time the equilibrium adsorption constantsand the kinetic constant for the hole-capture by sacrificial agents, as well as the quantum yield andthe rate constant of electron-hole recombination for the copper modified-TiO2nano-photocatalyst. Thisstudy provide a reliable approach to model photocatalytic reforming of alcohols over metal modified-TiO2catalyst for hydrogen generation.