Removal of Carbon Tetrachloride by Enhanced Reduction in a Dual-Chamber Electrochemical Reactor

Abstract

The cathode chamber of a dual-chamber electrochemical reactor separated by DuPont proton exchange membrane, which has a higher reductive capacity than a single-chamber reactor, has a remarkable reduction effect on carbon tetrachloride. In this work, the effects of different electrodes, cell voltage, temperature, electrolyte concentration, and initial pH on carbon tetrachloride (CCl4, CT) removal in wastewater were investigated. It was found that when the IrO2-RuO2/Ti electrode was the anode and the Fe electrode was the cathode, a satisfactory CT removal was obtained within 180 min, and this process was consistent with the first-order reaction kinetics. Under optimal application conditions, the removal of 1 mg/L CT within 180 min was 97.98(±1.21)%, the total organic carbon removal rate was 41.77%, the reductive products were mainly chloroform (CHCl3, CF) and dichloromethane (CH2Cl2, DCM), and this efficiency is superior to that of a single chamber. Therefore, this technique could rapidly dechlorinate and detoxify CT while preventing CT from escaping and damaging the atmospheric environment.