A novel photo-electro-chemical catalytic reactor with single/double compartment was designed. TiO2/Ti thin film electrode was used as photo-anodes, graphite as cathode and a saturated calomel electrode (SCE) as the reference electrode in the reactor. It is different that the anodic compartment and the cathodal compartment was partitioned off from each other and connected through salt bridge in the dougle-compartment reactor, while the same one in the single-compartment reator. The performance on the degradation of methyl red(MR) and methyl orange(MO) were compared between these two reactors. The effects of initial pH value and accumulative concentration of H2O2 on the decolorization rate of MR were investigated. It showed the MR was degradated effectively in these two reactors and the percent degradation were 96.9% (double-compartment) and 76.2% (single-compartment) respectively. The degradations all decreased with pH value changed from 3.0 to 7.0, while all increased with pH value changed from 7.0 to 12.0. It was more effective in the double-compartment reactor than in the single-compartment reactor during the degradation. And it was result from the higher concentration of H2O2 in the double-compartment reactor. Because in the single-compartment reactor, H2O2 generated during cathodal reaction diffused to the anode and was consumed, which could be prevented in the double-compartment reactor because of the clapboard. Under the conditions of cathodic potential Ec at -0.6V, initial solution pH at 3.0 and initial solution concentration 30 mg•L-1, the catalytic degradation of MR and MO were both pseudo-first order reactions.
