Effect of iron salt on the color removal of water containing the azo-dye reactive blue 69 using photo-assisted Fe(II)/H2O2 and Fe(III)/H2O2 systems

The effect of chloride, sulfate and nitrate anions on the color removal of water containing the azo-dye reactive blue 69 (RB69) in acidic solution, by using photo-assisted Fenton process with Fe(II)/H2O2 and Fe(III)/H2O2 systems was investigated. Experiments were conducted in a batch reactor irradiated during 5 h with a domestic 15 W lamp with emission in the visible spectra. Experimental results showed color disappearance in the first 5 min of reaction in the photo-assisted process for all of the different salts, greatly enhancing the reaction rate with respect to the corresponding systems under dark conditions. The exception of the general trend was the Fe2(SO4)3/H2O2/UV system, where the decolorization process is slower probably because the oxidative species generated by rupture of Fe(III)–peroxo complexes are less reactive. Total organic matter depletion and mineralization of the effluent were also tested during the experimental runs by means of total organic carbon (TOC) showing that, for most of the photo-assisted experiments high mineralization was reached after 3 h of reaction.