Advanced Oxidative Degradation Processes: Fundamentals and Applications (original) (raw)

This text is a brief review on the use of Advanced Oxidative Degradation Processes (AOPs) applied to the treatment of sewage and industrial and domestic wastewaters. A quick introduction to the importance of wastewater treatment to the environment is discussed, followed by the benefits and limitations of treatment techniques. Chemical fundamentals are focused on the generation of hydroxyl radicals, hydrogen atom abstraction, electrophilic addition of hydroxyl radicals, electrical transfer, and radical-radical reactions. AOPs are herein divided into two categories: homogeneous and heterogeneous. Homogeneous methods are based on the use of radical generators like hydrogen peroxide, ozone, the combined use of these oxidants, Fenton's reagent and photo-Fenton. Heterogeneous systems focus on the use of semiconductors, and results concerning the use of semiconductors in AOPs are discussed at the end.