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Stable Single-Pass Electrochemical Oxidation of Trace 1; 4-Dioxane in Groundwater via Multistage Reactors with Current Pulsing

delete2026-05-26
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OA
AI
S
Shasha Yang
L
Leslie Arrazolo
F
Fabian Menges
I
Ian H. Billinge
K
Kwan Lam Yip
J
Jae-Hong Kim *
DOI:10.1021/acsestengg.6c00122delete
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Abstract

Abstract

En 中文
Electrochemical oxidation (EO) can destroy a broad range of water contaminants, but single-stage, single-pass reactors often require high energy input and low water flux to achieve meaningful removal, limiting practical deployment. These constraints are acute for 1,4-dioxane, a persistent groundwater contaminant and potential human carcinogen, where long-term operation in low-conductivity water matrices is further hindered by anode degradation, cathodic scaling, and formation of harmful byproducts. Here, we develop and validate a scalable strategy that combines a multistage, flow-through EO reactor with on/off current pulsing using commercially available Ti4O7 mesh anodes. In a laboratory electrolyte (50 mM NaClO4), 1,4-dioxane degradation in a single-stage cell followed pseudo-first-order kinetics (k = 0.103 min–1), and staging substantially increased single-pass removal across practical fluxes. In synthetic groundwater, pulsed operation markedly suppressed mineral scaling and reduced perchlorate byproduct formation by 44–82% relative to direct-current electrolysis while improving operational stability. Integrating staging with pulsing delivered the most durable performance: a four-stage reactor operated at 15 s on/15 s off maintained stable treatment in groundwater at an environmentally relevant 1,4-dioxane concentration (0.1 mg/L), achieving 60–80% single-pass removal (average ∼70%) over 20 days with minimal voltage rise. These results demonstrate that coupling reactor staging with pulsed electrolysis mitigates key failure modes and byproduct risks, providing a practical design and operating framework for long-lasting EO as point-of-use/point-of-entry treatment of trace contaminants in groundwater.
Keywords:
electrochemical oxidation
pulsed electrolysis
multistage single-pass reactor
1,4-dioxane
groundwater treatment

Journal

ACS ES&T Engineering cover
ACS ES&T Engineering
IF:
6.7
Papers:
1.2K
Citations:
4.6K

Organization

Y
yale university
Scholars:
7.0K
Papers: 3.0K
Citations: 2
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