Degradation of phenol from aqueous solution using waste blast furnace flue dust and hydrogen peroxide

Abstract

A novel method to degrade phenol from simulated wastewater was studied using waste blast furnace flue dust with hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂). The factors that affect the degradation efficiency, including the pH of the solution, the initial H₂O₂ concentration, the amount of blast furnace flue dust, the reaction temperature, and the reaction time, were studied. The experimental results show that 1,000 mg/L of phenol in simulated wastewater can be decomposed completely within 12 h by 15 g/L blast furnace flue dust with 30 mmol/L H₂O₂ in a solution whose pH was 3.0 at the temperature of 35°C. The mechanism of phenol degradation was also investigated by high-performance liquid chromatography, X-ray diffraction, and UV–vis spectrum.

Keywords:

• Blast furnace flue dust
• Phenol
• H₂O₂
• Fenton’s reagent
• Solid waste

Acknowledgment

We acknowledge the financial supports from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (21473126), the Fund of Hubei Provincial Department of Education (B2014094), the Open Research Fund of Hubei Province key Laboratory of Coal Conversion, and New Carbon Material (WKDM2013010) and the Open Research Fund of Hubei Key Laboratory for Efficient Utilization and Agglomeration of Metallurgic Mineral Resources.