Oxidation Kinetics of Dimethyl Phenyl Carbinol by Heterogeneous Fenton Processes

Dimethyl phenyl carbinol (DMPC) is a persistent organic compound commonly found in wastewater from phenol manufacturing plants. While DMPC can be effectively treated by hydroxyl radicals, there is a lack of reported intrinsic rate constants for the heterogeneous Fenton reaction. This study aimed to determine the intrinsic rate constant between DMPC and hydroxyl radicals using competitive kinetics technique (using aniline as a reference compound) and heterogeneous Fenton processes. The results revealed that, under various experimental conditions encompassing pH (3 - 7), iron oxide (1 – 3 g/L of goethite or magnetite), hydrogen peroxide (5 – 20 mM), and organic concentrations (1 – 5 mM), the obtained intrinsic second-order rate constant for the heterogeneous Fenton reaction involving DMPC and hydroxyl radicals were comparable in between 5.00×109 and 5.51×109 M-1s-1 with an average value of 5.24×109 M-1s-1. Under the studied conditions, iron oxide dosage was the limiting factor governing the overall reaction rate and removal efficiency.