Complete oxidation of 1,4-dioxane over zeolite-13X-supported Fe catalysts in the presence of air

Zeolite-13X-supported Fe (Fe/zeolite-13X) catalysts with various Fe contents were prepared by the wet impregnation method. The catalysts were characterized by N2 adsorption-desorption isotherms to estimate the Brunauer–Emmett–Teller surface areas and Barrett–Joyner–Hanlenda pore size distributions. X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, temperature-programmed reduction, and temperature-programmed desorption of NH3 were used to investigate the textural properties of the Fe/zeolite-13X catalysts. Their catalytic activities were determined for the complete oxidation of 1,4-dioxane using air as the oxidant in a fixed‐bed flow reactor in the temperature range 100–400 °C. The influences of various process parameters, such as reaction temperature, metal loading, and gas hourly space velocity (GHSV), on the dioxane removal efficiency by catalytic oxidation were investigated. The stability of the catalyst was tested at 400 °C by performing time-on-stream analysis for 50 h. The Fe/zeolite-13X catalyst with 6 wt% Fe exhibited the best catalytic activity among the Fe/zeolite-13X catalysts at 400 °C and a GHSV of 24000 h−1, with 97% dioxane conversion and 95% selectivity for the formation of carbon oxides (CO and CO2). Trace amounts (< 3%) of acetaldehyde, ethylene glycol monoformate, ethylene glycol diformate, 1,4-dioxane-2-ol, 1,4-dioxane-2- one, and 2-methoxy-1,3-dioxalane were also formed as degradation products. A plausible degradation mechanism is proposed based on the products identified by GC-MS analysis.

Graphical AbstractThis study investigates zeolite-13X-supported Fe catalysts for the continuous removal of gas-phase 1,4-dioxane, a hazardous and priority pollutant, by catalytic oxidation with air as the oxidant at atmospheric pressure at 200–400 °C.Figure optionsDownload as PowerPoint slide