KINETIC-STUDY OF THE OZONATION OF SOME INDUSTRIAL WASTEWATERS

Kinetic studies of the ozonation of two wastewaters released by distillery and tomato processing plants have been carried out. Once it has been assumed that an irreversible gas-liquid reaction is developed between ozone and the matter present in the water, the film theory concept was applied to this system for kinetic determinations. The evolution of the organic and inorganic matter with ozonation time has been followed by the chemical oxygen demand. The procedure allows the determination of the rate coefficients of ozone with the wastewaters treated. According to the results obtained, ozone is consumed through fast reactions which take place near the water-gas interface during an initial period. This period is used to determine the rate coefficients. Then, at more advanced ozonation times, the reactions become slower and hence they take place in the bulk of the water, particularly for the case of tomato wastewaters. Values of the rate coefficient allow us to establish both the kinetic regime of absorption and to compare the reactivity of ozone with the wastewaters and single compounds.