Abstract View
Effects of UV Intensity and Gas Composition on Photocatalytic Nitrogen Fixation on Titanium Dioxide Nanoparticles
SABRINA WESTGATE, Nga Lee Ng, Georgia Institute of Technology
Abstract Number: 315
Working Group: Nanoparticles and Materials Synthesis
Abstract
Nitrogen fixation, the conversion of atmospheric nitrogen to other nitrogen species, is an integral part of the nitrogen cycle and atmospheric chemistry. Prior work has suggested that up to a few percent of all fixed nitrogen in soil could be due to photocatalytic nitrogen fixation on naturally occurring semiconducting nanoparticles, though these processes are not well constrained. While some studies looking at nitrogen photo-fixation have reported the production of nitrogen-containing species, most experiments have been performed in the bulk aqueous phase and with limited instrument capabilities. Moreover, the details and driving forces of this reaction are largely unknown. In this work, we conduct experiments to investigate NOx production in the presence of titanium dioxide nanoparticles. In our setup, we expose the titanium dioxide to UV lights while flowing a mixture of gasses through the experiment. The effects of UV light intensity and gas mixture composition are studied. Using state of the art instrumentation, we are able to replicate ambient environmental conditions and capture real-time, highly accurate data for the gaseous products of the photocatalytic nitrogen fixation reaction. Results from these experiments will provide data for determining the reaction rates and mechanism pathways that occur in nitrogen photocatalysis.