Photocatalysis Cuts MTBE's Successors

摘要

A Purdue University (North Central Campus, 1401 S.US 421, Westville, IN 46391; Tel: 219/785-5475) chemist has devised a photocatalytic method to remove the alphabet soup of gasoline oxygenators from contaminated groundwater. As environmental managers struggle to find ways of removing methyl tertiary butyl ether (MBTE) from groundwater, MTBE substitutes, ethyl tertiary butyl ether (ETBE), tertiary amyl methyl ether (TAME), and tertbutyl alcohol (TBA) are replacing the pollutant as octane enhancers for cleaner burning fuel with fewer air emissions. In some states, law requires the water-soluble gasoline additives. As the compounds find their way into more grades of gasoline, it becomes almost inevitable that they will find their way into ground-water via spills.With a viable technique for MTBE removal and a better-safe-than-sorry attitude, Purdue's Reynaldo Barreto is working on ways to extract the substitute compounds before they become an environmental problem. Says Barreto, "Why not try to figure it out now? MTBE was put into gasoline before anybody knew anything about it." Barreto hopes to expand the MTBE removal technique he began developing in 1991 to other potential contaminants.