The photochemical transformation of carbon monoxide in aqueous solution has been investigated at $25{\pm}0.1^{\circ}C$using ZnO as a photocatalyst. After irradiation of 253.7 nm UV light in the solution, carboxylation and carbonylation processes wer...
The photochemical transformation of carbon monoxide in aqueous solution has been investigated at $25{\pm}0.1^{\circ}C$using ZnO as a photocatalyst. After irradiation of 253.7 nm UV light in the solution, carboxylation and carbonylation processes were carried out, and the formation of formic acid, oxalic acid, glyoxylic acid, formaldehyde and glyoxal was observed. The formation of the products depended on the pH values in the solution. The yield of formaldehyde and glyoxal increased in acidic solution whereas it decreased in basic solution. When the pH values in the solution increased above 11.5, the yield of formic acid increased rapidly. The initial quantum yields of the products were determined and the probable mechanisms for the reactions were presented on the basis of the products analysis.