A study on the effect of the thickness of cold-rolled iron shavings on the dechlorination of trichloroethlene (TCE)

• Main Authors: Cruz, Aireena-Lyza G., Herrera, Ivan Felix I., King, Lourdes C.
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Animo Repository 2005
• Subjects: Trichloroethylene > Environmental aspects; Dichloroethylene > Environmental aspects; Drinking water; Chemical Engineering
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/etd_bachelors/9376
• Institution: De La Salle University

Trichloroethylene has become a major environmental concern due to its presence in groundwater thus, finding and developing an efficient and economical technique for the treatment of TCE contaminated water has become a wide concern. The general objective of this research is to investigate the degradation of TCE using cold-rolled iron shavings through the formation of chloride ions. 50 grams of shavings (1.5mm, 1.0mm thickness) were packed in a reactor, which was connected to a recycle flask, magnetic stirrer and pump by viton tubing, forming a continuous system. TCE solution of various initial concentrations (50, 100, 150, and 200ppm) was then introduced to the system at a rate of 40 mL/min, and then circulated throughout a set period of time. Samples were taken from the start of the run (t=0) and at increasing time intervals, thereafter. These were then analyzed for TCE concentration, chloride concentration, and pH. Utilization of iron in the form of shavings has proven to be effective in the reduction of TCE. TCE solution exhibited better degradation when exposed to thin iron shavings (1.0mm) achieving an average of 95.12% degradation compared to that which was exposed to thick iron shavings (1.5mm), which only achieved 87.71% degradation. An increase in chloride concentration was also observed, which proved that there was dechlorination taking place and that TCE was indeed degraded. The performance of the TCE degradation highly depends on the amount of surface area of the iron metal available to promote the reduction of TCE in the solution. Thus, confirming that the surface area of the metal was indeed a controlling factor in the reduction of TCE.