Photocatalysis as a tertiary treatment for petroleum refinery wastewaters

Abstract

Photocatalysis has been used as tertiary treatment for petroleum refinery wastewaters to comply with the regulatory discharge limits and to oxidize persistent compounds that had not been oxidized in the biological treatment. The wastewater is generated by the refinery and directly discharged into the Guanabara Bay (Rio de Janeiro). Although BOD removal is high, a residual and persistent COD, besides a somewhat high phenol content remains. Three photocatalysts were tested -TiO2 (Aldrich), ZnO (Aldrich), and TiO2 (P25, Degussa) -the third being the most active. The optimized conditions obtained with an experimental design were 3.0 g L-1 TiO2 and pH 6.3. The use of hydrogen peroxide (H2O 2) showed no beneficial effect. Removal of 93% of phenols, 63% of dissolved organic carbon (DOC), and more than 50% of oil and grease (OG) were achieved in the photocatalytic process, improving the quality of the treated wastewater.