Mechanistic insights into surfactant in enhanced reductive degradation of perchlorinated organic contaminants in Fenton system

This study investigates the mechanisms of surfactants in surfactant-in situ chemical oxidation (S-ISCO) for enhanced degradation of perchlorinated organic contaminants. The addition of Tween-80 (TW-80) or sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) in Fenton system resulted in a significant improvement in carbon tetrachloride (CT) removal from 6.2 % to 97.2 % and from 8.2 % to 91.8 %, respectively. Upon further analysis of free radical quenching studies and electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) tests, it was observed that surfactant radicals were responsible for CT removal with TW-80 presence, while superoxide radicals (O2−•) and carbon dioxide radicals (CO2−•) were the primary radicals with SDS presence. The dechlorination of CT reached 82.1 % and 75.3 % with TW-80 or SDS presence, respectively, indicating that most of the degraded CT could be completely mineralized. The possible degradation pathways of CT were proposed based on the detected intermediates. Additionally, degradation of various single or mixed chlorinated hydrocarbon contaminants with TW-80 or SDS presence in Fenton system was performed. The study also assessed the influence of different solution matrixes on CT degradation and the impact of the recovered surfactant solution after reaction on CT solubilization and removal. In summary, this study provides theoretical support for groundwater remediation with perchlorinated contaminants when containing surfactants.