The rates of the two main stages of photocatalytic ethanol destruction-oxidation of ethanol to acetaldehyde and oxidation of acetaldehyde to CO2-were studied under varied concentrations of ethanol and acetaldehyde and photocatalyst irradiance, at different temperatures, and over different photocatalysts. The rates followed the semiempirical three sites Langmuir-Hinshelwood model that envisages sites for ethanol and acetaldehyde adsorption and additional sites for competitive adsorption of ethanol and acetaldehyde. The increase in irradiance gave rise to higher selectivity toward CO2 via increased concentrations of gaseous intermediate acetaldehyde. However, the rate of ethanol oxidation rose faster than the rate of acetaldehyde oxidation. The selectivity toward CO2 monotonically decreased with temperature over TiO2 and the rate of oxidation reached a maximum at 80 degreesC. Among platinum-doped catalysts, the best activity was found for 1.1% Pt/TiO2. Platinum addition to TiO2 resulted in a 1.5- to 2-fold increased overall rate of oxidation. The selectivity to CO2 over Pt/TiO2 catalyst monotonically increased with temperature. Separate studies in a batch reactor demonstrated that addition of platinum changed the product distribution. Acetic acid, instead of carbon monoxide, was formed in copious quantities over the Pt/TiO2 catalyst. (C) 2003 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.