WATER PURIFICATION PROCESS UTILIZING ELECTROCHEMICALLY GENERATED HYDROXYL FREE RADICALS

AN ELECTROCHEMICAL PROCESS FOR DESTROYING ORGANIC COMPOUNDS DISSOLVED IN WATER WILL BE DEMONSTRATED, UTILIZING ELECTRODES WHICH GENERATE HYDROXYL FREE RADICALS. THESE NOVEL ELECTRODES WERE DEVELOPED WITH USDA SUPPORT TO DESTROY PESTICIDE WASTES. THE FUNDAMENTAL CHEMISTRY RESEMBLES PROCESSES POWERED BY IONIZING RADIATION. HYDROXYL ATTACKS MOST ORGANIC COMPOUNDS IN A NONSPECIFIC MANNER. OLEFINIC AND AROMATIC COMPOUNDS, INCLUDING HIGHLY CHLORINATED COMPOUNDS AND PHENOLS, REACT PARTICULARLY WELL. MOST CONTAMINATED GROUNDWATERS HAVE SUFFICIENT ELECTRICAL CONDUCTIVITY TO CARRY THE SMALL CURRENTS NEEDED TO REMOVE THE LOW TOC LEVELS TYPICAL OF THESE WATERS. THE PROCESS APPEARS PARTICULARLY ATTRACTIVE IN APPLICATION TO BRACKISH GROUNDWATERS TYPICAL OF COASTAL AREAS, AND TO INDUSTRIAL PROCESS WATERS. DESTRUCTION OF SEVERAL ORGANIC SOLVENTS DISSOLVED IN WATER IS DEMONSTRATED, AND TWO CELL CONFIGURATIONS TESTED AND COMPARED. THE RESULTS WILL BE EXTRAPOLATED AND USED TO DESIGN A LARGE WATER TREATMENT SYSTEM. BECAUSE THE HYDROXYL PRODUCING ANODES HAVE ALREADY BEEN DEVELOPED AND CHARACTERIZED, AND THE BASIC ENGINEERING PARAMETERS GOVERNING THEIR APPLICATION ARE WELL UNDERSTOOD, THE PROBABILITY OF SUCCESS IS HIGH.