M.I. Pariente

Heterogeneous catalytic wet peroxide oxidation systems for the treatment of an industrial pharmaceutical wastewater.

The aim of this work was to assess the treatment of wastewater coming from a pharmaceutical plant through a continuous heterogeneous catalytic wet peroxide oxidation (CWPO) process using an Fe(2)O(3)/SBA-15 nanocomposite catalyst. This catalyst was preliminary tested in a batch stirred tank reactor (STR), to elucidate the influence of significant parameters on the oxidation system, such as temperature, initial oxidant concentration and initial pH of the reaction medium. In that case, a temperature of 80 degrees C using an initial oxidant concentration corresponding to twice the theoretical stoichiometric amount for complete carbon depletion and initial pH of ca. 3 allow TOC degradation of around 50% after 200 min of contact time. Thereafter, the powder catalyst was extruded with bentonite to prepare pellets that could be used in a fixed bed reactor (FBR). Results in the up-flow FBR indicate that the catalyst shows high activity in terms of TOC mineralization (ca. 60% under steady-state conditions), with an excellent use of the oxidant and high stability of the supported iron species. The activity of the catalyst is kept constant, at least, for 55h of reaction. Furthermore, the BOD(5)/COD ratio is increased from 0.20 to 0.30, whereas the average oxidation stage (AOS) changed from 0.70 to 2.35. These two parameters show a high oxidation degree of organic compounds in the outlet effluent, which enhances its biodegradability, and favours the possibility of a subsequent coupling with a conventional biological treatment.

Catalytic wet hydrogen peroxide oxidation of a petrochemical wastewater

Continuous Catalytic Wet Hydrogen Peroxide Oxidation (CWHPO) for the treatment of a petrochemical industry wastewater has been studied on a pilot plant scale process. The installation, based on a catalytic fixed bed reactor (FBR) coupled with a stirred tank reactor (STR), shows an interesting alternative for the intensification of a continuous CWHPO treatment. Agglomerated SBA-15 silica-supported iron oxide (Fe(2)O(3)/SBA-15) was used as Fenton-like catalyst. Several variables such as the temperature and hydrogen peroxide concentration, as well as the capacity of the pilot plant for the treatment of inlet polluted streams with different dilution degrees were studied. Remarkable results in terms of TOC reduction and increased biodegradability were achieved using 160 degrees C and moderate hydrogen peroxide initial concentration. Additionally, a good stability of the catalyst was evidenced for 8 hours of treatment with low iron leaching (less than 1 mg/L) under the best operating conditions.