Removal of Organic Pollutants from Wastewater Using Different Oxidation Strategies

Many countries use nontraditional methods to treat wastewater, especially those with water lacks. Among these methods, heterogeneous photocatalysis is more commonly widely used since it converts organic molecules into carbon dioxide and water. In this study, the photocatalytic degradation process of total organic carbon was investigated by TIO2/UV technique (TUT). This treatment is carried out in a batch recycle reactor using a UV light and catalyst TIO2. The optimum operating parameters were investigated regarding the best organic removal including, total organic carbon concentration, flow rate, pH, irradiation time, and photocatalysis dosage. The result showed that the TUT is affected by reducing total organic carbon (TOC) from synthetic wastewater (SW) by 61% at 50 ml/min of flow rate, 250 mg of catalyst concentration TIO2, and a concentration of TOC of 25 mg/l. Then the result of TUT was compared with a process of combining TIO2/UV and an oxidizing agent (Hydrogen peroxide H2O2). It was found that 73% of organic removal was obtained which is best than TUT when using an H2O2 dosage of 100 mg/l. Experimentally, Ozone was also added to the process of TUT and the result showed that the removal percentage increased to 80%.