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Published on: June 14, 2018
UV-Activated Advanced Oxidation of MTBE and TBA: A Comparison of Sulfate and Hydroxyl-Radical Treatment Processes
Jaya Das Schober1, Lauren Mainolfi1, Aaron Neal1
1Engineering Management Program, Department of Systems Engineering and Management, Air Force Institute of Technology, Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, USA.
Abstract:
Contaminated groundwater must be treated to protect drinking water supplies. This study investigated the degradation of MTBE and TBA with UV/persulfate (PS) and UV/hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) advanced oxidation processes. Experiments were conducted at initial concentrations of MTBE and TBA of 7.4 and 6.2 mg/L respectively over a range of conditions and computational analysis was carried out to elucidate reaction mechanisms and pathways. Pseudo first-order rate constants were retrieved from temporal degradation profiles. MTBE degradation was faster than that of TBA, and UV/PS-driven oxidation of both chemicals was faster than that of UV/H2O2. Relative absorptivity measurements showed that PS absorbed a higher proportion of light than H2O2 did, which in turn created greater potential to generate radicals. Density Functional Theory (DFT) results provided additional new insights. UV/PS is a promising groundwater remediation technology for the removal of MTBE and TBA.
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