Oxidation of herbicides by in situ synthesized hydrogen peroxide and fenton’s reagent in an electrochemical flow reactor: study of the degradation of 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid

Abstract

This paper reports an investigation of H2O2 electrogeneration in a flow electrochemical reactor with RVC cathode, and the optimization of the O2 reduction rate relative to cell potential. A study of the simultaneous oxidation of the herbicide 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) by the in situ electrogenerated H2O2 is also reported. Experiments were performed in 0.3 M K2SO4 at pH 10 and 2.5. Maximum hydrogen peroxide generation rate was reached at −1.6 V versus Pt for both acidic and alkaline solutions. Then, 100 mg L−1 of 2,4-D was added to the solution. 2,4-D, its aromatic intermediates such as chlorophenols, chlororesorcinol and chlorinated quinone, as well as TOC were removed at different rates depending on pH, the use of UV radiation and addition of Fe(II). The acidic medium favored the hydroxylation reaction, and first order apparent rate constants for TOC removal ranged from 10−5 to 10−4 s−1. In the presence of UV and iron, more than 90% of TOC was removed. This value indicates that some of the intermediates derived from 2,4-D decomposition remained in solution, mainly as more biodegradable light aliphatic compounds.