Dehalogenation of toxic organic compounds has been intensively studied during the last decade by using zero-valent iron (ZVI). However, the reactivity of iron is compound specific and very low reactivities were reported for aromatic compounds including chlorophenols. In this study, hydrodechlorination of 2,4,6-trichlorophenol (2,4,6-TCP) was conducted in a batch system by using ZVI and catalyzed iron. No degradation was observed with ZVI over the 40 days experiments. Catalyzed ZVIs removed 2,4,6-TCP and palladium-coated iron (Pd/Fe) and nickel-coated iron (Ni/Fe) showed relatively enhanced reactivity while copper-coated iron (Cu/Fe) and platinum-coated iron (Pt/Fe) showed lower reactivities. The surface area normalized kinetic constants (kSA) of Pd/Fe, Ni/Fe, Cu/Fe, Pt/Fe are 2.54×10-4, 1.01×10-4, 2.24×10-5, 2.56×10-5 L m.2 h.1, respectively. The identification of less chlorinated phenols and phenol confirmed that the removal is dechlorination. Pd/Fe system exerts relatively low pH compared with the ZVI system, and the low pH is favorable for the dechlorination. The reactivity enhancement of catalyzed iron was discussed in terms of catalytic effects and the corrosion potential by the bimetal coupling. Variable Pd content on the Pd/Fe was tested, and the degradation rate of 2,4,6-TCP increased in proportion to the increase of Pd content.
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