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Hydrodechlorination of polychlorinated biphenyls in contaminated soil from an e-waste recycling area, using nanoscale zerovalent iron and Pd/Fe bimetallic nanoparticles

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Abstract

Soil pollution by polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) arising from the crude disposal and recycling of electronic and electrical waste (e-waste) is a serious issue, and effective remediation technologies are urgently needed. Nanoscale zerovalent iron (nZVI) and bimetallic systems have been shown to promote successfully the destruction of halogenated organic compounds. In the present study, nZVI and Pd/Fe bimetallic nanoparticles synthesized by chemical deposition were used to remove 2,2′,4,4′,5,5′-hexachlorobiphenyl from deionized water, and then applied to PCBs contaminated soil collected from an e-waste recycling area. The results indicated that the hydrodechlorination of 2,2′,4,4′,5,5′-hexachlorobiphenyl by nZVI and Pd/Fe bimetallic nanoparticles followed pseudo-first-order kinetics and Pd loading was beneficial to the hydrodechlorination process. It was also found that the removal efficiencies of PCBs from soil achieved using Pd/Fe bimetallic nanoparticles were higher than that achieved using nZVI and that PCBs degradation might be affected by the soil properties. Finally, the potential challenges of nZVI application to in situ remediation were explored.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the Science and Technology Foundation of Zhejiang Province, China (2009C13003), the National High Technology Research and Development Program of China (2012AA06A203), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (41271334 and 81001475) and the Science and Technology Development Foundation of Hangzhou (20101131N05).We thank Ms. Lijuan Mao, the technician of the 985-Institute of Agrobiology and Environmental Sciences of Zhejiang University, for her contributions in determining the specific surface area of nZVI.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Environmental Engineering, Zhejiang University, 866 Yuhangtang Road, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, 310058, People’s Republic of China

    Xi Chen, Xiaoyan Yao, Xiaomei Su, Chaofeng Shen, Chen Chen, Ronglang Huang & Xinhua Xu

  2. Center for Biomedicine and Health, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou, 311121, China

    Chunna Yu

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  1. Xi Chen
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  2. Xiaoyan Yao
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  3. Chunna Yu
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Correspondence to Chaofeng Shen.

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Responsible editor: Hongwen Sun

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Chen, X., Yao, X., Yu, C. et al. Hydrodechlorination of polychlorinated biphenyls in contaminated soil from an e-waste recycling area, using nanoscale zerovalent iron and Pd/Fe bimetallic nanoparticles. Environ Sci Pollut Res 21, 5201–5210 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-013-2089-8

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