Evaluation of 206 nm UV radiation for degrading organometallics in wastewater

This paper discusses the photodegradation of aqueous organometallic compounds through the use of a microwave electrodeless UV lamp radiating mainly 206 nm UV light. Acetylferrocene (AR), triphenyltin chloride (TPT), and C.I. reactive blue 13 (RB-13) were chosen as research targets. The effects of the initial concentration of organometallic compounds, irradiation time, and initial pH value on degradation efficiency were investigated. The degradation efficiency of compounds followed the order: AFc > TPT > RB-13. TOC removal efficiency of AFc, TPT and RB-13 reaches 53.2%, 25.6% and 19.7%, respectively, with 60 min of irradiation. The mechanism of photolysis, based on the analysis of photoproducts using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), is presented at the end of the paper. The results will help to promote further studies on the ability of microwave discharge electrodeless lamps to degrade aqueous pollutants. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.