Removing Aromatic Organic Compounds of Phenol and Furfural from Petroleum Refinery Wastewater Using Electron Beams

In this study, phenol and furfural removals from the standard solutions and petroleum refineries wastewater by electron beams have been investigated. The standard solutions of phenol and furfural were irradiated in the range of 1-10kGy and their concentrations were determined before and after irradiation by UV-VIS spectrophotometer. The effects of the experimental parameters including the amounts of the absorbed doses, pH variation, initial concentration of the organic compound and the salt effect were studied. The results of pH in the range of 3-11 showed that the removal of phenol and furfural was remarkably facilitated in the acidic condition. Studies showed that, at the dose of 6kGy, the removal percentages of phenol and furfural in the lower concentration of 20 and 100 mg/l respectively were more than 99%. However, by increasing the concentration, the amount of the removal gradually decreased. Also, investigation of the salt effect on the removal of these compounds within the range of 0.5-30% w/v concentration showed that at the dose of 6kGy, the presence of salt has no significant effect on the removal of phenol and furfural. Finally, the results of petroleum refinery wastewater irradiation in the optimum condition, obtained from the experiments, indicated that the removal percentages of phenol and furfural were more than 95%.