Jianliang Sun

PPCP degradation by UV/chlorine treatment and its impact on DBP formation potential in real waters

The ultraviolet/chlorine (UV/chlorine) water purification process was evaluated for its ability to degrade the residues of pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) commonly found in drinking water sources. The disinfection byproducts (DBPs) formed after post-chlorination were documented. The performance of the UV/chlorine process was compared with that of the UV/hydrogen peroxide (UV/H2O2) process in treating three types of sand-filtered natural water. Except caffeine and carbamazepine residues, the UV/chlorine process was found to be 59-99% effective for feed water with a high level of dissolved organic carbon and alkalinity, and 27-92% effective for water with a high ammonia content. Both chlorine radicals and hydroxyl radicals were found to contribute to the observed PPCP degradation. The removal efficiencies of chlorine- and UV-resistant PPCPs such as carbamazepine and caffeine were 2-3 times greater than in the UV/H2O2 process in waters not enriched with ammonia. UV/chlorine treatment slightly enhanced the formation chloral hydrate (CH), haloketone (HK) and trichloronitromethane (TCNM). It reduced haloacetonitrile (HAN) formation during the post-chlorination in comparison with the UV/H2O2 process. In waters with high concentrations of ammonia, the UV/chlorine process was only 5-7% more effective than the UV/H2O2 process, and it formed slightly more THMs, HKs and TCNM along with reduced formation of CH and HAN. The UV/chlorine process is thus recommended as a good alternative to UV/H2O2 treatment for its superior PPCP removal without significantly enhancing DBP formation.

Removal of aqueous hydrogen sulfide by granular ferric hydroxide—kinetics, capacity and reuse

Aqueous hydrogen sulfide causes a number of sulfide-related problems in sediment/aqueous environments. This paper investigates the use, regeneration and reuse of granular ferric hydroxide (GFH) for removal of aqueous hydrogen sulfide in batch experiments simulating water environments. The sulfide removal by GFH can be described by pseudo-first-order reaction kinetics with respect to dissolved sulfide concentrations and the removal rate was proportional to the GFH dosage. The sulfide removal rate almost tripled as pH decreased from 9.0 to 7.2. An increasing ionic strength (in NaCl solution) and the presence of SO4(2-) in simulated seawater decreased the removal rate while Ca(2+) and Mg(2+) in seawater hardly had any influence. The aqueous sulfide was mainly oxidized to elemental sulfur with the concurrent reduction of solid Fe(III) to Fe(II). The accumulation of the products (elemental sulfur, iron sulfide and surface-associated Fe(II)) on the surface of GFH eventually led to the latters exhaustion. By mixing with water containing dissolved oxygen, the exhausted GFH was able to recover with the simultaneous oxidation of Fe(II) to ferric (hydr)oxides and of solid sulfide to elemental sulfur and sulfur of higher valence states. The recovery in removal capacity could be attributed to the formation of amorphous or less ordered ferric (hydr)oxides on the GFH surface and the reduction in GFH granule size. This study suggests that GFH is a promising renewable material for removal of aqueous hydrogen sulfide in sediment/aqueous systems.

Hydrogen sulfide removal from sediment and water in box culverts/storm drains by iron-based granules

A renewable granular iron-based technology for hydrogen sulfide removal from sediment and water in box culverts and storm drains is discussed. Iron granules, including granular ferric hydroxide (GFH), granular ferric oxide (GFO) and rusted waste iron crusts (RWIC) embedded in the sediment phase removed aqueous hydrogen sulfide formed from sedimentary biological sulfate reduction. The exhausted iron granules were exposed to dissolved oxygen and this regeneration process recovered the sulfide removal capacities of the granules. The recovery is likely attributable to the oxidation of the ferrous iron precipitates film and the formation of new reactive ferric iron surface sites on the iron granules and sand particles. GFH and RWIC showed larger sulfide removal capacities in the sediment phase than GFO, likely due to the less ordered crystal structures on their surfaces. This study demonstrates that the iron granules are able to remove hydrogen sulfide from sediment and water in box culverts and storm drains and they have the potential to be regenerated and reused by contacting with dissolved oxygen.

DBP formation from degradation of DEET and ibuprofen by UV/chlorine process and subsequent post-chlorination

The formation of disinfection by-products (DBPs) from the degradation of N,N-diethyl-3-methyl benzoyl amide (DEET) and ibuprofen (IBP) by the ultraviolet irradiation (UV)/chlorine process and subsequent post-chlorination was investigated and compared with the UV/H2O2 process. The pseudo first-order rate constants of the degradation of DEET and IBP by the UV/chlorine process were 2 and 3.1 times higher than those by the UV/H2O2 process, respectively, under the tested conditions. This was due to the significant contributions of both reactive chlorine species (RCS) and hydroxyl radicals (HO) in the UV/chlorine process. Trichloromethane, 1,1,1-trichloro-2-propanone and dichloroacetic acid were the major known DBPs formed after 90% of both DEET and IBP that were degraded by the UV/chlorine process. Their yields increased by over 50% after subsequent 1-day post-chlorination. The detected DBPs after the degradation of DEET and IBP comprised 13.5% and 19.8% of total organic chlorine (TOCl), respectively, and the proportions increased to 19.8% and 33.9% after subsequent chlorination, respectively. In comparison to the UV/H2O2 process accompanied with post-chlorination, the formation of DBPs and TOCl in the UV/chlorine process together with post-chlorination was 5%-63% higher, likely due to the generation of more DBP precursors from the attack of RCS, in addition to HO.