title: The fate of MtBE during Fenton-like treatments through laboratory scale column tests.
abstract: In Situ Chemical Oxidation (ISCO) based on the Fenton's process is a proven technology for the treatment of groundwater contaminated by organic compounds. Nevertheless, the application of this treatment process to methyl tert-butyl ether (MtBE) is questioned, as there are concerns about its capacity to achieve complete mineralization. Many existing studies have focused on water contaminated by MtBE and are thus not representative of in situ treatments since they do not consider the presence of soil. In this work, the effectiveness of a Fenton-like process for MtBE treatment was proven in soil column tests performed at operating conditions (i.e., oxidant and contaminant concentration and flow rates) resembling those typically used for in situ applications. No MtBE by-products were detected in any of the tested conditions, thus suggesting that the tert-butyl group of MtBE was completely degraded. A mass balance based on the CO2 produced was used as evidence that most of the MtBE removed was actually mineralized. Finally, the obtained results show that preconditioning of soil with a chelating agent (EDTA) significantly enhanced MtBE oxidation.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Environmental Engineering, Department of Civil Engineering and Computer Science Engineering, University of Rome "Tor Vergata", Via del Politecnico 1, 00133 Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Daniela
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Piscitelli
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Environmental Engineering, Department of Civil Engineering and Computer Science Engineering, University of Rome "Tor Vergata", Via del Politecnico 1, 00133 Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Daniela
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Zingaretti
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Environmental Engineering, Department of Civil Engineering and Computer Science Engineering, University of Rome "Tor Vergata", Via del Politecnico 1, 00133 Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Iason
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Verginelli
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Environmental Engineering, Department of Civil Engineering and Computer Science Engineering, University of Rome "Tor Vergata", Via del Politecnico 1, 00133 Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Renato
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Gavasci
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Environmental Engineering, Department of Civil Engineering and Computer Science Engineering, University of Rome "Tor Vergata", Via del Politecnico 1, 00133 Rome, Italy. Electronic address: baciocchi@ing.uniroma2.it.
authors.forename: Renato
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Baciocchi
mesh_terms: D065096:Calcium Chelating Agents / Q000737:chemistry; D002245:Carbon Dioxide / Q000737:chemistry; D004492:Edetic Acid / Q000737:chemistry; D006861:Hydrogen Peroxide / Q000737:chemistry; D007501:Iron / Q000737:chemistry; D007753:Laboratories; D008738:Methyl Ethers / Q000737:chemistry*; D016877:Oxidants / Q000737:chemistry; D010084:Oxidation-Reduction; D012987:Soil / Q000737:chemistry; D012989:Soil Pollutants / Q000737:chemistry*; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D065096:Calcium Chelating Agents; C045076:Fenton's reagent; D008738:Methyl Ethers; D016877:Oxidants; D012987:Soil; D012989:Soil Pollutants; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical; D002245:Carbon Dioxide; C043243:methyl tert-butyl ether; D004492:Edetic Acid; D006861:Hydrogen Peroxide; D007501:Iron
keywords: Column tests; Groundwater contamination; Hydrogen peroxide; In situ chemical oxidation; MtBE