Phenol Removal Using Oxygen-Plasma Discharge in the Water
Decomposition of non-biodegradable contaminants such as phenol contained in water was investigated using a dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) plasma reactor in the aqueous solutions with continuous oxygen bubbling. Effects of various parameters on the removal of phenol in aqueous solution with high-voltage streamer discharge plasma are studied. In order to choose plasma gas, gas of three types (argon, air, oxygen) were investigated. After the selection of gas, effects of 1st voltage (80 ~220 V), oxygen flow rate (2 ~7 L/min), pH (3 ~11), and initial phenol concentration (12.5 ~100.0 mg/L) on phenol degradation and change of UV254 absorbance were investigated. Absorbance of UV254 can be used as an indirect indicator of phenol degradation and the generation and disappearance of the non-biodegradable organic compounds. Removal of phenol and COD were found to follow pseudo first-order kinetics. The removal rate constants for phenol and COD of phenol were 5.204 × 10-1 min-1 and 3.26 × 10-2 min-1, respectively.