Low-cost flow photoreactor for degradation of Reactive Black 5 dye by UV/H2O2, Fenton and photo-Fenton processes: a performance comparison

Abstract

In this work, a flow photoreactor was designed and set up using low-cost and recyclable parts to develop chemical treatments based on advanced oxidation processes (AOP) of highly colored textile wastewater. To evaluate this sustainable system´s efficiency, we investigated and compared the performance of three types of destructive methods (UV/H₂O₂, Fenton, and photo-Fenton) on the decolorization of aqueous solutions of Reactive Black 5 dye (RB5). We also analyzed the effect of the oxidant and dye concentrations on the rate of color removal in each one of the three methods. The results showed that, regardless of the initial operating conditions, the photo-Fenton process achieved the highest degradation rates, particularly when the highest ratio between the oxidant and dye concentrations was used ([H₂O₂]: [RB5] = 24.5 mg L^-1: 25 mg L^-1), leading to complete color removal within only 10 minutes of reaction. With the same initial condition, the Fenton and UV/H₂O₂ processes were also capable of removing the color entirely, even though they demanded more extended runs of 25 min. and 45 min., respectively. The effect of pH on the decolorization by the photo-Fenton process was also investigated, showing the same high performance at pHs 3 and 4. The degradation profile achieved by the photo-Fenton treatment was appropriately fitted by a pseudo-first-order kinetic. The non-expensive photoreactor proved to be quite useful for the degradation of the RB5, mainly when this azo dye underwent the photo-Fenton process.