| Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 147782 | Chemical Engineering Journal | 2014 | 8 Pages |
•An EC/Fe3+/PMS process was employed to degrade clofibric acid in water.•The effect of operating parameters on the degradation was investigated.•The main intermediate products were determined by GC–MS technology.•A plausible degradation pathway of clofibric acid was proposed.
The removal of clofibric acid (CA) in aqueous solution by ferrous ion activated peroxymonosulfate (PMS) oxidation in an electrochemical reactor (EC/Fe3+/PMS) was performed in this study. The process involved the use of a dimensionally stable anode (DSA) and a stainless steel cathode. Ferrous ion was produced from cathodic reduction of externally applied ferric ion and activated PMS for the generation of sulfate radicals (SO4-). Various parameters were investigated to optimize the process, including PMS concentration, Fe3+ concentration and current density. The results indicated that the removal efficiency increased with the increase of PMS concentration, Fe3+ concentration and current density. The scavenging effect was examined by using ethanol (EtOH) and tert-butyl alcohol (t-BuOH) to identify the reactive radicals in EC/Fe3+/PMS process. The TOC removal efficiency was 30.8% in 60 min reaction, and it reached 64.7% when the reaction time was extended to 180 min. The GC–MS analysis was employed to identify the intermediate products and a plausible degradation pathway was proposed.
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