Applications of electrochemical ferrate(VI) for degradation of trichloroethylene in the aqueous phase

Abstract

The degradation of trichloroethylene (TCE) by ferrate generated from electrochemical synthesis has been studied. The degradation efficiency of TCE in aqueous solution was observed at various pH (3, 7, 11), ferrate dosages (5, 8, 11, 13, 15 and 17 mg/L), and temperature (10, 25, 35 and 50°C). The experimental results showed that TCE removal efficiency increased with an increase in ferrate dosages. For the effect of pH, the highest value of k_app, 893.54 M⁻¹s⁻¹, was observed at pH 7. The TCE degradation pathways have been proposed based on the intermediate products such as ethyl chloride, dichloroethylene, chloroform, 1,1-dichloropropene, trichloroacetic acid and trichloroethane, and Cl⁻ was identified as an end product.

Keywords:

• Ferrate(VI)
• Trichloroethylene
• Reaction pathway
• Intermediate study

Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the 2015 Busan Green Environment Center research grant.