| Title |
Degradation Behavior of Methane-Derived Halocarbons and Mixed Contaminants in Groundwater Using Persulfate-Based Oxidation |
| Authors |
한경진(Kyungjin Han) ; 염여훈(Yuhoon Yeum) ; 김재빈(Jaebin Kim) ; 권수열(Sooyoul Kwon) |
| DOI |
https://doi.org/10.15681/KSWE.2025.41.3.188 |
| Keywords |
Fe2+ activation; Methane-derived halocarbons; Persulfate oxidation; Trichloroethylene; Groundwater remediation |
| Abstract |
This study evaluated the degradation behavior of methane-derived halocarbons in groundwater using a persulfate-based oxidation process under various conditions. Batch experiments were conducted using dichloromethane (DM), chloroform (CF), or carbon tetrachloride (CT) to determine the behavior of each compound. A binary mixture of trichloroethylene (TCE) and CF was used to simulate realistic scenarios of industrial groundwater contamination. The degradation reactivity was found to be closely linked to the specific molecular structure of each compound. Particularly, the presence of C?H bonds played a critical role in oxidation performance. DM and CF possessing one or more C?H bonds exhibited substantial degradation through direct oxidation by persulfate. The first-order degradation rate constant was ?1.1275 d-1 for DM and ?0.7248 d-1 for CF under non-activated conditions. In contrast, CT lacking C?H bonds showed negligible degradation. In binary systems, the optimal persulfate to activator (Fe²?) ratio was determined to be at least 1:0.01, achieving a notably high degradation rate constant of ?1.8240 d-1 for TCE and ?0.2362 d-1 for CF. These findings clearly highlight that the presence or absence of C-H bonds in the molecular structure of halocarbons can critically influence the oxidation efficiency. These results underscore the importance of developing target-specific treatment strategies based on compounds’ chemical reactivities, which are essential for achieving cost and time-effective groundwater remediation. |