Skip to main content
Log in

Degradation of Methyl Orange in Aqueous Solution by Microwave Irradiation in the Presence of Granular-Activated Carbon

  • Published:
Water, Air, & Soil Pollution Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The degradation of methyl orange (MO) in aqueous solution by microwave irradiation in the presence of granular-active carbon (GAC) was investigated. It was found that a synergistic rather than an additive effect of microwave irradiation and GAC contributes to the high-degradation efficiency. The ultraviolet and visible spectrum (UV–vis), infrared spectroscopy (IR), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) measurements were conducted to trace the MO degradation process. It was demonstrated that the decrease in performance of GAC after repetitive use is largely attributed to the adsorption of some intermediate products on the surface of GAC. The regeneration of the spent GAC under microwave radiation was also investigated. The results show that the activity of spent GAC can be effectively recovered by microwave radiation and 74.1 % of its initial activity remains after six reaction cycles.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Ahmed, S., Rasul, M. G., Martens, W. N., Brown, R., & Hashib, M. A. (2011). Advances in heterogeneous photocatalytic degradation of phenols and dyes in wastewater: a review. Water, Air, & Soil Pollution, 215, 3–29.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ania, C. O., Menendez, J. A., Parra, J. B., & Pis, J. J. (2004). Microwave-induced regeneration of activated carbons polluted with phenol. A comparison with conventional thermal regeneration. Carbon, 42, 1383–1387.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Bo, L. L., Quan, X., Chen, S., Zhao, H. M., & Zhao, Y. Z. (2006). Degradation of p-nitrophenol in aqueous solution by microwave assisted oxidation process through a granular ACP fixed bed. Water Research, 40, 3061–3068.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Bosske, J. H., Cooper, R. F., & Dobson, I. (1992). Mechanisms for nonthermal effects on ionic mobility during microwave processing of crystalline solids. Journal of Materials Research, 7, 495–501.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cordero, T., Rodríguez-Mirasol, J., Bedia, J., Gomis, S., Yustos, P., García-Ochoa, F., et al. (2008). Activated carbon as catalyst in wet oxidation of phenol: effect of the oxidation reaction on the catalyst properties and stability. Applied Catalysis B: Environmental, 81, 122–131.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Dong, C. S., Zhong, M. L., Huang, T., Ma, M. X., Wortmann, D., Brajdic, M., et al. (2012). Photodegradation of methyl orange under visible light by micro-nano hierarchical Cu2O structure fabricated by hybrid laser processing and chemical dealloying. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 3, 4332–4338.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • El-Hendawy, A. A. (2003). Influence of HNO3 oxidation on the structure and adsorptive properties of corncob-based activated carbon. Carbon, 41, 713–722.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Fan, J., Hu, X. Y., Xie, Z. G., Zhang, K. L., & Wang, J. J. (2012). Photocatalytic degradation of azo dye by novel Bi-based photocatalyst Bi4TaO8I under visible-light irradiation. Chemical Engineering Journal, 179, 44–51.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Goel, A., Bhatt, R., & Rani, N. (2012). Removal of methyl orange, an azo dye, using oxidative degradation by hexacyanoferrate (III) ions. Discovery Science, 2, 32–36.

    Google Scholar 

  • Horikoshi, S., Osawa, A., Abe, M., & Serpone, N. (2011). On the generation of hot-spots by microwave electric and magnetic fields and their impact on a microwave-assisted heterogeneous reaction in the presence of metallic Pd nanoparticles on an activated carbon support. Journal of Physical Chemistry C, 115, 23030–23035.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Jou, C. J., & Wu, C. R. (2008). Granular activated carbon coupled with microwave energy for treating pentachlorophenol-containing wastewater. Environmental Progress, 27, 111–116.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Koch, M., Yediler, A., Lienert, D., Insel, G., & Kettrup, A. (2002). Ozonation of hydrolyzed azo dye reactive yellow 84 (Cl). Chemosphere, 46, 109–113.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Liu, Y., & Sun, D. Z. (2007). Development of Fe2O3-CeO2-TiO2/γ-Al2O3 as catalyst for catalytic wet air oxidation of methyl orange azo dye under room condition. Applied Catalysis B: Environmental, 72, 205–211.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Liu, X. T., Yu, G., & Han, W. Y. (2007). Granular activated carbon adsorption and microwave regeneration for the treatment of 2,4,5-trichlorobiphenyl in simulated soil-washing solution. Journal of Hazardous Materials, 147, 746–751.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Liu, Q. S., Wang, P., Zhao, S. S., & Zhang, W. (2012). Treatment of an industrial chemical waste-water using a granular activated carbon adsorption-microwave regeneration process. Journal of Chemical Technology and Biotechnology, 87, 1004–1009.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lua, A. C., & Guo, J. (2001). Microporous oil-palm-shell activated carbon prepared by physical activation for gas-phase adsorption. Langmuir, 17, 7112–7117.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Macías-Sánchez, J., Hinojosa-Reyes, L., Guzmán-Mar, J. L., Peralta-Hernández, J. M., & Hernández-Ramírez, A. (2011). Performance of the photo-Fenton process in the degradation of a model azo dye mixture. Photochemical & Photobiological Sciences, 10, 332–337.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pelekani, C., & Snoeyink, V. L. (2000). Competitive adsorption between atrazine and methylene blue on activated carbon: the importance of pore size distribution. Carbon, 38, 1423–1436.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Polaert, I., Estel, L., & Ledoux, A. (2005). Microwave-assisted remediation of phenol waste water on activated charcoal. Chemical Engineering Science, 60, 6354–6359.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Pradhan, B. K., & Sandlea, N. K. (1999). Effect of different oxidizing agent treatments on the surface properties of activated carbons. Carbon, 37, 1323–1332.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Quan, X., Liu, X. T., Bo, L. L., Chen, S., Zhao, Y. Z., & Cui, X. Y. (2004). Regeneration of acid orange 7-exhausted granular activated carbons with microwave irridiation. Water Research, 38, 4484–4490.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Remya, N., & Lin, J. G. (2011). Current status of microwave application in wastewater treatment—a review. Chemical Engineering Journal, 166, 797–813.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Rodríguez, A., Ovejero, G., Sotelo, J. L., Mestanza, M., & García, J. (2010). Heterogeneous Fenton catalyst supports screening for mono azo dye degradation in contaminated wastewaters. Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research, 49, 498–505.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Santos, A., Yustos, P., Cordero, T., Gomis, S., Rodríguez, S., & García-Ochoa, F. (2005). Catalytic wet oxidation of phenol on active carbon: stability, phenol conversion and mineralization. Catalysis Today, 102–103, 213–221.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stüber, F., Font, J., Fortuny, A., Bengoa, C., Eftaxias, A., & Fabregat, A. (2005). Carbon materials and catalytic wet air oxidation of organic pollutants in wastewater. Topics in Catalysis, 33, 3–50.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Türgay, O., Ersöz, G., Atalay, S., Fross, J., & Welander, U. (2011). The treatment of azo dyes found in textile industry wastewater by anaerobic biological method and chemical oxidation. Separation and Purification Technology, 79, 26–33.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wang, S., Zhu, Z. H., Coomes, A., Haghseresht, F., & Lu, G. Q. (2005). The physical and surface chemical characteristics of activated carbons and the adsorption of methylene blue from wastewater. Journal of Colloid and Interface Science, 284, 440–446.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Yuen, F. K., & Hameed, B. H. (2009). Recent developments in the preparation and regeneration of activated carbons by microwaves. Advances in Colloid and Interface Science, 149, 19–27.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Zhang, Z. H., Shan, Y. B., Wang, J., Ling, H. J., Zang, S. L., Gao, W., et al. (2007). Investigation on the rapid degradation of congo red catalyzed by activated carbon powder under microwave irradiation. Journal of Hazardous Materials, 7, 325–333.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

The work was supported by Shandong Provincial Natural Science Foundation, China (no. ZR2012EEM029).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Dongyan Xu.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Xu, D., Cheng, F., Zhang, Y. et al. Degradation of Methyl Orange in Aqueous Solution by Microwave Irradiation in the Presence of Granular-Activated Carbon. Water Air Soil Pollut 225, 1983 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-014-1983-0

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-014-1983-0

Keywords

Navigation