Abatement of 4-Chlorophenol in Aqueous Phase by Ozonation Coupled with a Sequencing Batch Biofilm Reactor (SBBR)

The aim of this work was to assess the mineralization of 100 and 200 mg L−1 4-chlorophenol (4-CP) solutions by ozonation-biological treatment. The results show that starting from a 4-CP initial concentration from 100 to 500 mg L−1 and using an ozone flow rate of 5.44 and 7.57 g h−1, 4-CP was completely removed. A kinetic constant around 9·10−2 min−1 was calculated for the ozone direct attack. The biodegradability (BOD5/COD) of the pre-ozonated solutions increased from 0 until a range between 0.2–0.37. The combination of the ozonation and aerobic biological treatment in an aerobic sequencing batch biofilm reactor (SBBR) gave an abatement of more than 90% of the initial TOC.