Phenol Oxidation by Combined Cavitation Water Jet and Hydrogen Peroxide

The paper presents results of phenol oxidized under the conditions of high temperature created during collapse of cavitation bubbles. The degradation efficiency has been greatly improved by using cavitation water jets combined with H2O2 as demonstrated in laboratory tests. Various factors affecting phenol removal ratio were examined and the degradation mechanism was revealed by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The results showed that 99.85% of phenol was mineralized when phenol concentration was 100 mg·L−1 with pH value of 3.0, H2O2 concentration of 300 mg·L−1, confining pressure of 0.5 MPa, and pumping pressure of 20 MPa. The intermediate products after phenol oxidation were composed of catechol, hydroquinone and p-benzoquinone. Finally, phenol was degraded into maleic acid and acetic acid. Furthermore, a dynamic model of phenol oxidation via cavitation water jets combined with H2O2 has been developed.