The dechlorination of chlorinated hydrocarbons by zerovalent metals has received much attention. In addition to iron, zerovalent silicon is a strong reductive material which can serve as an alternative for remediation of contaminated sites. However, little is known about the reaction kinetics and mechanism of chlorinated hydrocarbons by zerovalent silicon under anoxic conditions. In this review, parameters controlling the reactivity of silicon in dechlorination were discussed. In addition, the enhanced effects of bimetallic system including Fe/Si and Ni/Si and addition of surfactant on the dechlorination kinetics and mechanisms were also introduced and reviewed. The dechlorination efficiency and rate of chlorinated hydrocarbons by zerovalent silicon increased upon increasing pH from 7.2 to 9.5. The dechlorination followed the pseudo-first-order kinetics and the rate constant (k obs ) for carbon tetrachloride dechlorination increased from 0.5 h -1 at pH 7.2 to 2.11 h -1 at pH 9.5. In addition, tetrachloroethylene (PCE) can be effectively dechlorinated by zerovalent silicon. Addition of Ni 2+ and Fe 2+ significantly enhanced the dechlorination efficiency and rate of PCE as well as changed the distribution of products. However, the roles of Ni 2+ and Fe 0 were different. Addition of Fe 0 to Si could form the buffer solution to maintain the pH at 7.8 when the ratio of Si and Fe is optimized, and subsequently enhanced the dechlorination efficiency and rate of carbon tetrachloride and PCE, while the adsorbed Ni(II) In Interactions of Nanomaterials with Emerging Environmental Contaminants; Doong, R., et al.; ACS Symposium Series; American Chemical Society: Washington, DC, 2013.ions were converted to Ni(0) homogeneously onto the surface of zerovalent silicon and exhibited the synergistic effect on the dechlorination of PCE by Si under anoxic conditions. In addition, the introduction of surfactant can also enhance the dechlorination efficiency, and the dechlorination rate of PCE increased 62 and 106 times higher than silicon alone when CTAB and polyethylene glycol were introduced, respectively. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy results confirmed that the addition of PEG could inhibit the production of silicon dioxide, resulting in the acceleration of dechlorination rate of PCE by Si. These processes would significantly accelerate the dechlorination rate of chlorinated hydrocarbons under anoxic conditions and would be helpful in facilitating the development of processes that could be useful for the enhanced degradation of co-contaminants for long-term performance.
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