Prediction of advanced oxidation performance in UV/H₂O₂ reactor systems with LP-UV lamps

Advanced oxidation processes, like UV/H₂O₂ oxidation, are important barriers against organic micro pollutants in drinking water treatment. In order to guarantee safe drinking water, it is important to be able to predict the reactors' performance to adjust the operating conditions to the actual influent water characteristics (like UV transmission) and lamp performance. Therefore, a design tool was developed, which is based on a kinetic model that describes and predicts the direct photolysis and oxidation of organic compounds in pilot experiments, using Low Pressure (LP) UV-lamps. This model has been combined with computational fluid dynamics (CFD), in order to be able to accurately predict the results of pilot and full scale installations, and also to design reactor systems. The model was applied to three model compounds (atrazine, ibuprofen and NDMA) in two different pilot reactors, and it has been shown that reactor performance can be fairly predicted by applying this ‘UVPerox’ model. The model takes into account the water quality and power of the lamps, and the properties of the compounds involved.