Study on the Degradation of Phenol Wastewater by Photo-oxidation

The degradation of phenol in water by UV/Fenton, Sunlight/Fenton, UV/TiO2 and UV/Fe2+ processes were studied. The results showed that the effective degradation could be observed in UV/Fenton and Sunlight/Fenton reaction processes. The degradation of phenol by UV/TiO2 and UV/Fe2+ processes were not notable. The initial pH and the content of Fe2+ also have significant effect on the degradation of phenol. The degradation effects are optimum at pH 3 - 4 in UV/Fenton and Sunlight/Fenton processes. Effective degradation was observed as adding the right amount of Fe2+, however, high content of Fe2+ was unfavorable to phenol degradation by photo-Fenton processes.