Using Wet Air Oxidation Technology to Destroy Tetraphenylborate

摘要

A bench-scale feasibility study on the use of a Wet Air Oxidation (WAO) process to destroy a slurry laden with tetraphenylborate (TPB) compounds has been undertaken. WAO is an aqueous phase process in which soluble and/or insoluble waste constituents are oxidized using oxygen or oxygen in air at elevated temperatures and pressures ranging from 150 °C and 1 MPa to 320 °C and 22 MPa. The products of the reaction are CO_2, H_2O, and low molecular weight oxygenated organics (e.g. acetate, oxalate). Test results indicate WAO is a feasible process for destroying TPB, its primary daughter products [triphenylborane (3PB), diphenylborinic acid (2PB), and phenylboronic acid (1PB)], phenol, and most of the biphenyl byproduct. The required conditions are a temperature of 300 °C, a reaction time of 3 hours, 1:1 feed slurry dilution with 2M NaOH solution, the addition of CuSO_4.5H_2O solution (500 mg/L Cu) as catalyst, and the addition of 2000 mL/L of antifoam. However, for the destruction of TPB, its daughter compounds (3PB, 2PB, and 1PB), and phenol without consideration for biphenyl destruction, less severe conditions (280 °C and 1-hour reaction time with similar remaining above conditions) are adequate.