Enhancing biodegradability of refractory insensitive munition preparation wastewater via advanced oxidation treatment: Experimental study and process parameters optimization

Efficient treatment of insensitive munition Butyl-(2-azidoethyl) nitramine (BuAENA) preparation wastewater (BPW) is of utmost importance due to its high concentration of refractory organic compounds and toxic pollutants. The BPW exhibits a CODCr of up to 100 g/L and a low ratio of BOD5 to CODCr (BOD5/CODCr < 0.2), necessitating through degradation of pollutants and enhancement of biodegradability for subsequent biochemical processing. In this study, we propose a novel approach utilizing γ-alumina loaded LaFeO3 perovskite (LFA) to activate peroxymonosulfate (PMS) for BPW degradation, which can effectively degrade refractory organic pollutants in BPW and greatly improve BOD5/CODCr. The degradation mechanism involved various reactive species, including hydroxyl radicals, sulfate radicals, and singlet oxygen, with singlet oxygen being identified as the dominant oxidant responsible for the degradation process. To optimize the degradation process, a 4-factor-3-level Response Surface Methodology (RSM) and Multilayer Perceptron (MLP) artificial neural network (ANN) were employed to model the degradation process of BPW. This study presents a promising approach for the comprehensive treatment of refractory wastewater. By improving the biodegradability of BPW and promoting a more cost-effective operating process, the proposed method holds potential for practical application in the industry of insensitive munition BuAENA preparation wastewater.