Abstract
Chemical reduction of the hexavalent chromium, Cr(VI), present in contaminated soil and groundwater was carried out in a slurry reactor under dynamic conditions (120 rpm and 25°C) using different reductants [ferrous sulphate (Fe(II))], sodium bisulphite, sucrose, ascorbic acid and zerovalent iron (ZVI)] in order to evaluate the influence of the reductant on the redox process. Chemical analysis of the contaminated soil revealed a Cr(VI) concentration of 528 ± 31 mg kg−1. Batch studies under dynamic conditions (slurry reactor) using different [Cr(VI)]/[reductant] molar ratios revealed that only Fe(II) and ZVI species can promote both reduction of Cr(VI) and immobilisation of Cr(III) (formation of an insoluble hydroxide compound). It was verified that 1.0 g of ZVI is capable of converting 104 ± 5 mg of Cr(VI) in Cr(III). A kinetic redox study was carried out using ZVI in different conditions. In all cases, it was verified that Cr(VI) reduction follows a pseudo-first-order kinetic behaviour. The dependence of the pseudo-first-order kinetic rate constant, k obs, on [ZVI] indicates that the redox process taking place in the slurry reactor is rather complex. A phenomenological kinetic equation for the redox process taking place in the slurry reactor was presented in order to describe the behaviour of k obs under non-ideal conditions.
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Acknowledgements
The authors wish to thank the National Scientific Council for Research and Development—CNPq (process no. 141024/2005-4).
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Franco, D.V., Da Silva, L.M. & Jardim, W.F. Chemical Reduction of Hexavalent Chromium and Its Immobilisation Under Batch Conditions Using a Slurry Reactor. Water Air Soil Pollut 203, 305–315 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-009-0013-0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-009-0013-0