Degradation of 4-Chlorophenol in a Batch Electrochemical Reactor Using BDD Electrodes

The influence of current density (j) (0.25, 0.30, 0.25 and 0.40 A/cm2), initial pH (2.6, 6.5 and 12), stirring speed (As) (400, 500 and 600 rpm), and initial concentration of 4-chlorophenol ([4-CP]0) (300, 500 and 700 mg/L) on degradation of persistent pollutant in a batch electrochemical cell without divisions is presented in this paper. The electrochemical cell was composed of two boron-doped diamond electrodes (BDD). The results of the study showed that best conditions for total degradation of 4-CP were: j of 0.40 A/cm2, initial pH of 6.5, As of 500 rpm, and [4-CP]0 of 500 mg/L, after 150 min of reaction time. Removal of total organic carbon (TOC) was 83% at these conditions. The by-products were identified by UHPLC. This allowed for the proposal of a degradation pathway of 4-CP at the best conditions. Furthermore, these results demonstrate that the electrochemical method employed in this study allows high percentages (96%) of degradation of 4-CP and that the process is applicable to wastewater treatment.