On-line electrochemical production of ferrate (VI) for odor control

Abstract Sulfur-containing compounds are one kind of representative odorant from sewage, wastewater treatment plants and associated with various industries. In this study, the on-line electrogenerated ferrate (VI) technique was used to remove gaseous methyl mercaptan (CH 3 SH) for odor control. The second-order reaction kinetics of CH 3 SH oxidation with ferrate was identified and meanwhile, the stability of ferrate in high alkaline medium was investigated for the first time. The influencing factors including alkalinity, current density and co-existing ions on the ferrate formation were also investigated with details in this study. Experimental results show that for the ferrate formation, the 14 mol dm −3 NaOH is the optimal alkalinity at 4.5 mA cm −2 ; increasing current density and decreasing the SO 4 2− concentration are helpful for the ferrate production. This fundamental research provides essential understanding for developing the on-line electrochemical ferrate process for gaseous sulfur-containing compound degradation in odor control.