Degradation of 4-chlorophenol by pulsed arc discharge in water - estimation of the energy consumption

Pulsed arc (electrohydraulic) discharge process (PAED) has been studied for the removal of some organic pollutants. Firstly, the destruction of para-chlorophenol by PAED system was studied under some different experimental conditions (ionic content, pH, conductivity and organic initial concentration) in a 5.6 L reactor, with the following configuration: 2.9 kV of potential, 140 ¿F of capacitors. Secondly, the energy consumption for the degradation of 4-CP was estimated. From four initial concentrations of 4-CP, the energy consumption was found to be about 3.5 10⁵ kJ/mol. A comparison between PAED efficiency and UV-254 nm, O₃ and O₃/H₂O₂ systems is finally presented.