F.L. Souza

Electrochemical degradation of the dimethyl phthalate ester on a fluoride-doped Ti/β-PbO2 anode.

The electrooxidation of the dimethyl phthalate (DMP) ester was galvanostatically carried out in a filter-press reactor using a fluoride-doped lead dioxide (β-PbO2,F) film electrodeposited on a Ti substrate. The variables investigated were the nature of the supporting electrolyte (NaCl and Na2SO4), pH (3, 7, and 10), current density (10, 20, 40, 60, and 80mAcm(-2)), and temperature (10, 20, 30, 40, and 50°C). The removal of DMP was monitored through high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and total organic carbon (TOC) analysis. The best conditions were obtained using Na2SO4 and at low current densities, independent of the solution pH or temperature. These conditions led to the highest levels of current efficiencies and complete combustion. However, the TOC removal levels were low, due to the generation of highly oxidized intermediates, which was confirmed by the intermediates detected by HPLC.

Electrochemical degradation of dimethyl phthalate ester on a DSA® electrode

The electrochemical degradation of dimethyl phthalate (DMP) using a one-compartment filter press flow cell and a commercial dimensionally stable anode (DSA®) is presented. The best electrolysis conditions were determined by the analysis of the influence of the nature and concentration of the support electrolyte, pH, current density and temperature. The abatement of DMP concentration and total organic carbon (TOC) removal were superior in the presence of NaCl, as well as the apparent first order kinetic constants. Using constant ionic strength at 0.15 mol dm-3 by adding Na2SO4, DMP concentration decreases faster at relative low NaCl concentrations while the TOC removal after 1 h of electrolysis increases with NaCl concentration. The DMP removal was very similar for all the current densities investigated at acidic solutions. When electric energy saving is considered, since the electrochemical system was under mass transport conditions, the best operational option is to use low current density values.

A wind-powered BDD electrochemical oxidation process for the removal of herbicides

In the search for greener treatment technologies, this work studies the coupling of a wind turbine energy supply with an electrolytic cell (CWTEC device) for the remediation of wastewater polluted with pesticide 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D). The discontinuous and unforeseeable supply of energy is the main challenge inspiring this new proposal, which aims at reducing the environmental impact of electrolytic treatment by using a green energy supply. The results obtained using the coupled technologies are compared with those obtained by powering the electrolyser with a traditional power supply with a similar current intensity. The mineralisation of wastewater can be accomplished independently of how the electrolytic cell is powered, although differences in performance are clearly observed in the total organic carbon (TOC) and 2,4-D decays. These changes can be explained in terms of the changing profile of the current intensity, which influences the concentrations of the oxidants produced and thereby the mediated electrolytic process.

Performance of wind-powered soil electroremediation process for the removal of 2,4-D from soil

In this work, it is studied a wind-powered electrokinetic soil flushing process for the removal of pesticides from soil. This approach aims to develop an eco-friendly electrochemical soil treatment technique and to face the in-situ treatment of polluted soils at remote locations. Herbicide 2,4 dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) is selected as a model pollutant for the soil treatment tests. The performance of the wind-powered process throughout a 15 days experiment is compared to the same remediation process powered by a conventional DC power supply. The wind-powered test covered many different wind conditions (from calm to near gale), being performed 20.7% under calm conditions and 17% under moderate or gentle breeze. According to the results obtained, the wind-powered soil treatment is feasible, obtaining a 53.9% removal of 2,4-D after 15 days treatment. Nevertheless, the remediation is more efficient if it is fed by a constant electric input (conventional DC power supply), reaching a 90.2% removal of 2,4-D with a much lower amount of charge supplied (49.2 A h kg(-1) and 4.33 A h kg(-1) for wind-powered and conventional) within the same operation time.

OXIDAÇÃO ELETROQUÍMICA DOS CORANTES REATIVOS PRETO 5 E AZUL 19 UTILIZANDO UM ELETRODO DE DIAMANTE DOPADO COM BORO NÃO COMERCIAL

We have studied the treatment of Reactive Black 5 (RP5) and Blue 19 (RA19), which are respectively azo and anthraquinone textile dyes, by electrochemical oxidation using a non commercial boron doped diamond electrode supported on titanium metallic with a relation between B and C equal to 15,000 ppm. Pt was used as counter electrode and Ag/AgCl(sat) was the reference electrode. The variables investigated to optimize the degradation were support electrolyte concentration (0.05, 0.1 and 0.2 mol L-1 of K2SO4), temperature (25, 35 and 45 oC) and pH (2.5 and 10) by applying a current density of 75 mA cm-2. Total decolorization was observed in all electrochemical conditions studied. The highest rates of mineralization and chromatographic area removal were attained at high support electrolyte concentration due to the increase of conductivity, which caused more generation of hydroxyl radicals. RP5 was degraded at lower electrolysis time than RA19 with smaller requirement of electric charge. The mineralization rate increased in acid medium and at higher temperature since the increase in temperature favors the generation reactions of persulfate. These conditions led to the highest levels of current efficiencies and lower energy consumed.