Natural organic matter (NOM) is a complex mixture of organic compounds that occurs ubiquitously in both surface and ground waters. Its presence in water supplies not only contributes to aesthetic problems such as taste, odor and color, but also to operational and regulatory issues which include increased chemical usage, increased sludge production and membrane fouling. The variability in the amount and nature of natural organic matter is a significant factor in controlling the reactivity of aquatic humic substances with chlorine during water treatment processes. Hence, the potential for the formation of carcinogenic disinfection byproducts necessitates the removal of organics prior to chlorination stage in search for alternative advanced oxidation technologies to ensure compliance with drinking water quality standards. Humic substances (HS) represent the major fraction of naturally occurring organic substances comprised of carbon rich polydisperse polyelectrolytes. During recent years a significant interest has been devoted to the photocatalytic treatment of HS as model compounds of NOM. This paper addresses some basic issues related to the photocatalytic treatment of a model fulvic acid in relation to the relevant UV-vis and fluorescence spectroscopic properties. The oxidative removal of fulvic acid is evaluated by pseudo first order as well as Langmuir Hinshelwood kinetic models.
Access provided by Autonomous University of Puebla. Download to read the full chapter text
Chapter PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Keywords
References
Alberts, J.J., Takacs, M., Egeberg, P.K., 2002, Total luminescence spectral characteristics of natural organic matter (NOM) size fractions as defined by ultrafiltration and high performance size exclusion chromatography (HPSEC), Organic Geochem., 33: 817-828.
Battin, T.J., 1998, Dissolved organic matter and its optical properties in a blackwater tributary of the upper Orinoco River, Venezuela, Organic Geochem., 28: 561-569.
Bekbolet, M., 1996, Destructive removal of humic acids in aqueous media by photocatalytic oxidation with illuminated titanium dioxide, J. Environ. Sci. Health A., 31: 845-858.
Bekbolet, M., Boyacioglu, Z., and Ozkaraova, B., 1998, The influence of solution matrix on the photocatalytic removal of color from natural waters, Wat. Sci. Technol., 38: 155-162.
Claudio, M., 1999, Kinetic analysis of photoinduced reactions at the water semiconductor interface, Catal. Today, 54: 205-216.
Dahlen, J., Bertilsson, S., Pettersson, C., 1996, Effects of UV-A irradiation on dissolved organic matter in humic surface waters, Environ. Int., 22: 501-506.
Duarte, R.M.B.O., Santos, E.B.H., Duarte, A.C., 2003, Spectroscopic characteristics of ultrafiltration fractions of fulvic and humic acids isolated from an eucalyptus bleached Kraft pulp mill effluent, Wat. Res., 37: 4073-4080.
Fu, J., Ji, M., Zhao, Y., Wang, L., 2006, Kinetics of aqueous photocatalytic oxidation of fulvic acids in a photocatalysis-ultrafiltration reactor (PUR), Separation and Purification Technol., 50 (1): 107-113.
Hautala, K., Peravuori, J., Pihlaja, K., 2000, Measurement of aquatic humus content by spectroscopic analysis, Wat. Res., 34: 246-258.
Peuravuori, J., Pihlaja, K., 1997, Molecular size distribution and spectroscopic properties of aquatic humic substances, Anal. Chimica Acta, 337: 133-149.
Rook, J.J., 1974, Formation of haloforms during chlorination of natural waters. Proc. Soc. Wat. Treat. Exam., 23(2): 234-243.
Senesi, N., 1990, Molecular and quantitative aspects of the chemistry of fulvic acid and its interactions with metal ions and organic chemicals Part II: The fluorescence spectroscopy approach, Anal. Chimica Acta, 232: 77-106.
Singer P.C., 1999, Humic substances as precursors for potentially harmful disinfection by-products, Wat. Sci. Technol., 40(9): 25-30.
Uyguner C.S., Bekbolet, M., 2007, A Review on the Photocatalytic Degradation of Humic Substances, in: Advances in control of disinfection byproducts, A. Nikolaou, H. Selcuk, L. Rizzo, (Eds.), pp. 1-27.
Uyguner C.S., Elucidation of the photocatalytic removal pathways of humic substances: Progress towards mechanistic explanations, Bogazici University, PhD. Thesis, 2005.
Uyguner, C.S., Bekbolet, M., 2005a, A comparative study on the photocatalytic degradation of humic substances of various origins, Desalination, 176: 167-176.
Uyguner, C.S., Bekbolet M., 2005b, Evaluation of humic acid photocatalytic degradation by UVvis and fluorescence spectroscopy, Catal. Today, 101: 267-274.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2008 Springer
About this paper
Cite this paper
Uyguner, C.S., Bekbolet, M. (2008). Aqueous Photocatalysis, Natural Organic Matter Characterization And Removal: A Case Study Of The Photacatalytic Oxidation of Fulvic Acid. In: Hlavinek, P., Bonacci, O., Marsalek, J., Mahrikova, I. (eds) Dangerous Pollutants (Xenobiotics) in Urban Water Cycle. NATO Science for Peace and Security Series. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-6795-2_22
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-6795-2_22
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-1-4020-6800-3
Online ISBN: 978-1-4020-6795-2
eBook Packages: Earth and Environmental ScienceEarth and Environmental Science (R0)