COD Removal from Distillery Wastewater Using Fenton Method by RSM Approach in Batch Study

There are different methods for industrial wastewater treatment. Biological methods commonly used to treat wastewater containing organic matters, but due to existing complex compounds in beet molasses with low biodegradability, chemical method may be more effective. Beet molasses was used as a carbon source for production by Saccharomyces cerevisiae in a batch culture. A residue produce after alcoholic fermentation as an effluent commonly named vinasse. In this study, treatment of dark colored compounds beet molasses was carried out by Fenton reagents (FeSO4 and H2O2). Iron sulfate as a coagulant and H2O2 as a radical source lead to precipitation of organic matters and COD reduction. Response surface methodology (RSM) was used to optimize the influence of initial soluble COD, initial solution pH, dosage of iron sulfate and hydrogen peroxide concentration on the COD removal. The optimum initial soluble COD, iron sulfate dosage, hydrogen peroxide concentration and initial solution pH was found to be 1200 0 mg/l, 8 g/l, 6 g/l and 5.5, respectively. Under these conditions, removal efficiency of COD was 47%.