Investigating the removal rate of endocrine disrupting compound of diethyl phthalate from aqueous solutions using catalytic ozonation process

The emergence of new chemical industries has caused the release of a large amount of organic compounds including industrial by-products, insecticides and other chemicals in nature. Endocrine disrupting compounds are a known group of hazardous and complex pollutants that occurs in wastewater and water sources worldwide, either naturally or as a result of human activities. In this study, an attempt is made to remove diethyl phthalate from water environments by the advanced oxidation process of ozonation in the presence of activated carbon produced from the Skanbil tree.

methods and Materials:

 This experimental study was done in a reactor with a volume of 100 mL. In each experiment, diethyl phthalate solution was poured into the pilot in the desired concentration and ozone with 0.8 mg/min dose was injected into the reaction solution. Process parameters included pH (2-8), reaction times (2 to 30 min), pollutant concentration (5-25 mg/L) and catalyst dose (0.025-0.1 gram). In the end of each experiment, the sample was withdrawn from the pilot and analyzed using HPLC to determine the residual diethyl phthalate.

The results showed that under optimal conditions of pH = 6.8, ozone dose = 0.8 mg/min and contact time = 30 minutes, ozonation could only remove 60% of diethyl phthalate, and under the same conditions, catalytic ozonation with 0.075 g of carbon obtained from the skanbil tree could remove 94% of diethyl phthalate.

The results of this research showed that catalytic ozonation with carbon obtained from the wood waste of shanbil tree can be used as an advanced treatment method.