Herein, the vacuum ultraviolet system (VUV) was introduced
into
the peracetic acid/ferrous ion (PAA/Fe(II)) process for the first
time to treat the micropollutants in water. When contaminant concentrations
(i.e., 10 μM) are comparable to those reported in previous literature,
the VUV/PAA/Fe(II) system with a low dosage of PAA (i.e., 50 μM)
and trace Fe(II) ion (i.e., 5 μM to 10 μM) exhibited remarkable
performance for carbamazepine (CBZ) degradation (more than 90%) within
just 5 min and at a wide pH range from 3.0 to 9.0. The outstanding
performance of the VUV/PAA/Fe(II) system was attributed to the favorable
synergistic effect of the UV-induced Fe(II) regeneration cycle and
the activation of PAA as well as H2O2 (coming
from both the PAA solution and reactions occurring in the VUV system).
Furthermore, the calculated low EE/O value confirmed the energy saving
characteristic of the VUV/PAA/Fe(II) system. Considering that the
initial Fe(II) concentration required by the system is within the
Fe(II) concentration range in natural groundwater and can be further
reduced to the value lower than the commonly utilized threshold of
Fe for drinking water, this study provides a possibility for the improvement
of the UV-based Fenton-like system by in situ utilization of inherent
trace metal ions in natural water.