M. Stefan, J. Bolton
Apr 17, 1998
Citations
9
Influential Citations
240
Citations
Quality indicators
Journal
Environmental Science & Technology
Abstract
1,4-Dioxane is an EPA priority pollutant often found in contaminated groundwaters and industrial effluents. The common techniques used for water purification are not applicable to 1,4-dioxane, and the currently used method (distillation) is laborious and expensive. This study aims to understand the degradation mechanism of 1,4-dioxane and its byproducts in dilute aqueous solution toward complete mineralization, by using the UV/H2O2 process in a UV semibatch reactor. The decay of 1,4-dioxane generated several intermediates identified and quantified as aldehydes (formaldehyde, acetaldehyde, and glyoxal), organic acids (formic, methoxyacetic, acetic, glycolic, glyoxylic, and oxalic) and the mono- and diformate esters of 1,2-ethanediol. Measurement of the total organic carbon (TOC) during the treatment indicated a good agreement between the experimentally determined TOC values and those calculated from the quantified reaction intermediates, ending in complete mineralization. A reaction mechanism, which accoun...