Hybrid peroxi-coagulation/ozonation process for highly efficient removal of organic contaminants

Aromatic compounds such as phenols presented widely in coal chemical industry wastewater (CCW) render the treatment facing great challenge due to their biorefractory characteristics and potential risks to the environment and human health. Ozone-based advanced oxidation processes show promising for these pollutants removal, but the mineralization via ozonation alone is unsatisfactory and not cost-effective. Herein, a hybrid peroxi-coagulation/ozonation process (denoted as PCO) was developed using sacrificial iron plate as an anode and carbon black modified carbon felt as cathode in the presence of ozonation. An enhanced phenol removal of & SIM;100% within 20 min and phenol mineralization of & SIM;80% within 60 min were achieved with a low energy consumption of 0.35 kWh/g TOC. In this novel process, synergistic effect between ozonation and peroxi-coagulation was observed, and beside O 3 direct oxidation, peroxone played a dominant role for phenol removal. In the PCO process, the hydrolyzed Fe species enhanced the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), while & BULL; OH was dominantly responsible for pollutant degradation. This process also illustrated high resistance to high ionic strength and better performance for TOC removal in real wastewater when compared with ozonation and peroxi-coagulation process. Therefore, this process is more cost-effective, being very promising for CCW treatment.& COPY; 2023 Published by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of Chinese Chemical Society and Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences.