Skip to main content
U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Oxygen controlled product formation in CCl{sub 4} dechlorination using zero-valent iron

Conference ·
OSTI ID:126360
; ;  [1]
  1. Univ. of Iowa, Iowa City, IA (United States)

Carbon tetrachloride (CCl{sub 4}) was abiotically dechlorinated using zero-valent iron powder (Fe{sup o}) to yield chloroform (CHCl{sub 3}) and methylene chloride (CH{sub 2}Cl{sub 2}), which did not undergo further dechlorination. Dechlorination was rapid and approximated first-order kinetics in the range of concentrations tested (CCl{sub 4}: 1.5 to 5.5 {mu}M; Fe{sup o}: 1 to 10 g per 265 mL distilled deionized water). Initial dechlorination rate coefficients for anoxic batch reactors (0.290 {plus_minus} 0.009 hr{sup -1} for 1 g Fe{sup o}; 1.723 {plus_minus} 0.078 hr{sup -1} for 10 g Fe{sup o}) increased with iron surface area (initially 2.4 {plus_minus} 0.2 m{sup 2}/g). Dechlorination also occurred under oxic conditions, although rates were significantly slower (e.g., 0.085 {plus_minus} 0.041 hr{sup -1} for 1 g Fe{sup o} and 7.4 mg/L initial dissolved oxygen). Rate coefficients increased with time, probably due to an increase in reactive surface area from pitting and dissolution of the iron surface. A rapid pH increase was synchronous to dissolved oxygen consumption, and the pH remained constant after oxygen depletion. This was attributed to the proton and oxygen consuming aerobic corrosion of the Fe{sup o} surface. Recalcitrant CH{sub 2}Cl{sub 2} was decreased in the presence of dissolved oxygen, which reacted with dechlorinated intermediates to yield less environmentally onerous products such as formic acid and carbon monoxide.

OSTI ID:
126360
Report Number(s):
CONF-950402--
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English