A Kinetic Model for the Aqueous Degradation of MTBE by Fe0/H2O2

Abstract

Methyl tertiary-butyl ether (MTBE) is a possible human carcinogen that has been used as a gasoline oxygenate at concentrations of up to 15% by volume for about 45 years in the US. However, its high water solubility has exacerbated spills at gasoline stations, sometimes resulting in local groundwater MTBE contamination levels of over 100 mg/L. Advanced oxidation using Fe0 and H2O2 is a promising technique for mineralizing organic contaminants, but current understanding of the remediation chemistry needs to be improved to facilitate design of subsurface or engineered systems. A kinetic model for the degradation of MTBE in batch systems applying zero-valent iron (Fe0) andhydrogen peroxide (H2O2) oxidation in aqueous solution was developed. The model includes: H2O2 and water chemistry, iron speciation, and MTBE oxidation reactions. H2O2/water and MTBE degradation equilibrium and reaction rate parameters were taken from the literature. Reaction rate and equilibrium parameters for iron speciation were taken from the literature, or from our prior work. The rate constant for the dissolution of Fe0 was found from this work. The model was compared to experimental data from the literature for MTBE degradation using Fe0/H2O2