The free radical chemistry of tert-butyl formate:: rate constants for hydroxyl radical, hydrated electron and hydrogen atom reaction in aqueous solution

Transients generated in situ by advanced oxidation technologies (AOTs) to destroy organic contaminants in ground and drinking water often give large concentrations of chemical by-products. These by-products may have adverse health effects, and can also interfere with the desired chemical removal by competing for the generated transients, thus lowering the overall efficiency of the remediation process. To allow for a quantitative evaluation of the influence of tertbutyl formate (TBF), a major by-product formed in the AOT destruction of methyl tert-butyl ether, rate constants for TBF reaction with the hydroxyl radical, the hydrated electron and the hydrogen atom in aqueous solution were measured in this study. Absolute values of (5.23+/-0.07) x 10(8), (5.48+/-0.09) x 10(8) and (3.58+/-0.07) x 10(6) M(-1)s(-1), were determined at 22degreesC, respectively. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.