A remoção do corante reativo Reactive Blue 4 (RB4) por redução eletroquímica em solução aquosa foi investigada sobre eletrodo de carbono vítreo reticulado. O grupo antraquinona presente no corante RB4 é reduzido em pH < 8,0 em uma única etapa a hidroquinona, segundo um processo reversível de dois elétrons e reação de pré-protonação, via geração de um radical semiquinona detectado espectrotométricamente. Em pH > 8,0, ambas as formas não e pré-protonada da antraquinona são reduzidas em duas etapas reversíveis de dois elétrons. Após 3 horas de eletrólise em meio ácido e neutro o corante perde 60% de sua coloração, enquanto que em meio alcalino perde apenas 37%. Simultaneamente, 64% de remoção de carbono orgânico total foi obtida após eletrólise em meio ácido de pH 2,0.The electrochemistry reduction for the removal of Reactive Blue 4 (RB4) dye from aqueous solution using reticulated glassy carbon electrode is investigated. At pH < 8.0 the anthraquinone group of the RB4 dye are reduced in one cathodic step to hidroquinone after a reversible two-electron process involving a precedent two protons reaction. A stable semiquinone is detected by spectrophotometric technique. At pH > 8.0 the reduction process involves two reversible 2-electron steps, whose species are generated by a protonation equilibrium of anthraquinone group. The results shows that 60% of color removal was obtained after 3 hours of RB4 dye electrolysis at acidic and neutral conditions and only 37% at alkaline conditions. Simultaneously 64% of total organic carbon was removed after electrolysis at pH 2.0.Keywords: reactive dyes, electrochemical reduction, dye treatment, reactive blue 4
IntroductionReactive dyes are the main group of dyes used in the textile industry.1 They are very effective in fabric dyeing due to the reactive groups capable of forming covalent bonds with a hydroxyl or amino group on the fiber. Inefficiencies in the dyeing process results in 10-15% of all dyestuff being lost directly to wastewater.2 Therefore, their crescent world consumption has attracted the critical attention of the public and the authorities with respect to the toxicological and environmental aspects of the reactive dyes. 3,4 Dye wastewater is usually treated by physical or chemical treatment process. They include physicalchemical flocculation, electroflotation, membranefiltration, electrokinetic coagulation, ion-exchange, irradiation, precipitation and other treatment using activated carbon. 5 Over the past few years, alternative methods 6-10 for dye treatment have been investigated, including chemical oxidation with reagents such as: ozone, hydrogen peroxide, ozone/UV, hydrogen peroxide/UV and Fenton's reagent [hydrogen peroxide + Fe (II)]. The application of electrochemical oxidation with or without UV light as method for dye degradation have also been investigated, [11][12][13][14][15] but no mechanisms of the reduction were discussed. [16][17][18][19] Most of the electrochemical studies involving reduction of reactive dyes are based on mercury electrode [16][17...