A comparison of fenton oxidation and photocatalyst reaction efficiency for humic acid degradation

There have been many studies on the use of photocatalysts as an advanced oxidation process (AOP) to oxidize and degrade organic-based contaminants. This research group has previously reported a production process of Ti based spherical activated carbon and the characteristics of the product. This paper further examines the process of fenton oxidation and the process of Ti-spherical carboneous material (Ti-SCM) photolysis to evaluate their respective advantages and disadvantages. Non-biodegradable humic acid (HA) was chosen for the purpose of the study to observe the degradation. It is demonstrated that fenton oxidation is fast and efficient in a low organic viscous solvent. Ti-SCM is not greatly affected by variation of the pH level and the process is also fast and efficient. Moreover, the process's retention rate of catalysts and its reusability were greater than that of fenton oxidation, which required pH balancing and produced sludge. (c) 2013 The Korean Society of Industrial and Engineering Chemistry. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.