Activated carbon cloth: a potential adsorbing/oxidizing catalyst for phenolic wastewater

An investigation into the use of activated carbon cloth (ACC) as a potential adsorbent and/or catalyst for oxidation processes is reported. The extent of increase/decrease of oxidation/adsorption of phenol, as measured by total organic carbon content (%), is explained by considering the effects of the oxidants such as ozone and hydrogen peroxide on the activated carbon cloth. Results also show that acid pH enhances the catalytic decomposition of H₂O₂ to hydroxyl radicals, increasing TOC removal from 16 to 55% as a result of oxidation of phenol in addition to adsorption on the ACC surface. Furthermore when using ACC catalysis under optimized conditions, the maximum extent of TOC elimination is approximately 70% with three 15 min doses of ozone at pH 9.