Efficiency of ultrasound for degradation of an anionic surfactant from water: Surfactant determination using...

The removal of a surfactant from wastewater is usually difficult due to its toxicity and low biodegradability. The aim of this study was to apply sonoreactor for degradation of an anionic surfactant from aqueous solution. An ultrasonic bath with frequency of 130 kHz was used to investigate the effects of different operational parameters such as sonication time, initial concentration and power. In this study, experiments of linear alkylbenzene sulfonates solution were performed using methylene blue active substances method. Experiments were performed at initial concentrations of 0.2 , 0.5 , 0.8  and 1 mg/L, frequency of 130 kHz, acoustic powers value of 400 and 500 W, temperature of 18-20 °C and pH value of 6.8-7. This study showed that linear alkylbenzene sulfonates degradation rate was found to increase with increasing sonication time and power. In addition, as the concentration increased, the linear alkylbenzene sulfonates degradation rate decreased in the ultrasonic reactor. •Surfactants are one of the largest groups of pollutants which exist in almost all urban and many industrial wastewaters.•Ultrasonic reactors alone may not be useful for reducing completely complex wastewaters of high surfactant load.•Application of ultrasonic reactors in combination with other treatment processes including Ozone, UV irradiation, chlorination, Fenton, nanoparticles and H₂O₂ could be used as a pre-treatment unit in a sequential chemical and biological treatment process.