Catalytic Wet Peroxide Oxidation of Phenol in a New Two-Impinging-Jets Reactor

Abstract

The catalytic wet peroxide oxidation (CWPO) of phenol with activated carbon (AC) as the catalyst has been successfully tested in a novel type of two-impinging-jets reactor (TIJR). The TIJR is characterized by a high-intensity reaction chamber, which is separated by a perforated plate from other parts of the reactor. The perforated plate was used as a filter to keep the catalyst particles within the reaction chamber. The influences of various operating and design parameters such as jet Reynolds number, feed flow rate, internozzle distance, and the jet diameter on the performance capability of the TIJR were investigated. As a result of the impinging process, turbulence, complex trajectory of AC particles, relatively high local concentration of hydrogen peroxide, and the relatively high local catalyst loading within the reaction chamber, the fractional disappearance of phenol and the total organic carbon (TOC) removal, obtained in the TIJR, increased compared to those obtained by conventional reaction systems such as packed-bed reactors and batch stirred-tank reactors. This may be attributed to the elimination of the external mass-transfer resistance around the solid particles, complex flow pattern within the reaction chamber, energy released as the result of impinging-jets collision, efficient use of hydrogen peroxide caused by the contact pattern provided by the TIJR, and the high-intensity mixing especially at the impingement zone of the TIJR.