Pyrite-enhanced methylene blue degradation in non-thermal plasma water treatment reactor

In this study, methylene blue (MB) removal from an aqueous phase by electrical discharge non-thermal plasma (NTP) over water was investigated using three different feed gases: N2, Ar, and O2. The results showed that the dye removal rate was not strongly dependent on the feed gas when the electrical current was kept the same for all gases. The hydrogen peroxide generation in the water varied according to the feed gas (N2 < Ar < O2). Using O2 as the feed gas, pyrite was added to the reactor in acid medium resulting in an accentuated increase in the dye removal, which suggests that pyrite acts as a Fenton-like catalyst. The total organic carbon (TOC) content of the dye solution decreased slightly as the plasma treatment time increased, but in the presence of the pyrite catalyst the TOC removal increased substantially. The acute toxicity test using Artemia sp. microcrustaceans showed that the treated solution is not toxic when Ar, O2 or O2–pyrite is employed. Electrospray ionization mass spectrometry analysis (ESI-MS) of the treated samples indicated that the dye degradation occurs via high energy electron impact as well as successive hydroxylation in the benzene rings of the dye molecules.