Identification of deactivation-resistant origin of In(OH)3 for efficient and durable photodegradation of benzene, toluene and their mixtures

Highlights: • Durable photocatalytic decomposition of VOCs was achieved on In(OH)₃. • The benzoic acid and carbonaceous byproducts were accumulated on P25. • The reaction pathway with byproducts can be avoided on In(OH)₃. • The reaction mechanisms of photocatalytic decomposition of VOCs was proposed. • The elucidation of deactivation-resistant mechanism on In(OH)₃ were proposed. Aromatic hydrocarbon is a representative type of VOCs, which causes adverse effects to human health. The degradation stability of aromatic hydrocarbon is of vital importance to commercializing a photocatalyst for its practical application. The most commonly used titanium dioxide photocatalyst (P25) was deactivated rapidly in the photocatalytic VOCs degradation process. In this work, the indium hydroxide (In(OH)₃) photocatalyst was developed, which exhibited not only higher efficient activity but also ultra-stable stability for degradation of benzene, toluene and their mixtures. The origin of the activity difference between two catalysts was investigated by combined experimental and theoretical ways. Based on in situ DRIFTS and GC-MS, it was revealed that benzoic acid and carbonaceous byproducts were specifically formed and accumulated on P25, which were responsible for deactivation of photocatalyst. In contrast, as revealed by both DFT calculations and experimental results, the reaction pathway with byproducts blocking the active sites can be thermodynamically avoided on In(OH)₃. This rendered high durability to In(OH)₃ photocatalyst in degradations of aromatic pollutants. The elucidation of deactivation-resistant effect and reaction mechanism as an ideal photocatalyst for practical usage were provided.