Streamer-Like Electrical Discharges in Water: Part II. Environmental Applications

Plasmas formed in aqueous solutions dissociate water into highly oxidative and reductive radicals which can induce chemical changes in compounds present in the bulk liquid. As a result, electrical discharge plasmas have acquired significant importance in drinking and wastewater treatment. Part II of this manuscript reviews the chemistry of electrical discharges in liquid water and the chemical effects of plasmas on the degradation of organic molecules. Due to a wide range of work done with plasmas in water, this review is limited to streamer-like electrical discharges directly in water excluding the discharges with gases bubbling through the plasma zone and the presence of additives. The goal was to summarize and present major findings on the fundamental mechanisms related to the production of radicals in the plasma as well as to describe chemical pathways for the degradation of different groups of molecules.