(658e) Chemical Properties and Degradation Efficiency of Radio-Frequency Plasmas In Water

To treat contaminated water, advanced oxidation
technologies (AOT) utilize various precursors and processes to produce hydroxyl
radicals (OH^?); species which are, because of their high
oxidation potential, capable of degrading virtually any organic compound in the
aqueous solution. However, in some of the AOTs, the production of OH^? can
be quite limited depending on, for example, the type
of the OH^? precursor (H₂O vs. H₂O₂)
and the turbidity of the solution. Thus, there is a requirement for a
technology that will overcome the drawbacks associated with the current AOTs
and the preliminary results from this study indicate that radio-frequency (RF)
plasma in water, a new ?type? of plasma formed by low-voltage high-frequency
(13.56 MHz) electrical discharge, could be that technology. Compared to the
conventional high-voltage streamer-like discharges, the volume of the RF plasma
is several times larger and the intensity of the plasma-generated UV light appears
to be higher. Thus, the goal of this study is to chemically and spectroscopically
characterize RF plasma and asses its efficiency for the degradation of
Rhodamine B dye.