Hydrothermal oxidation of model molecules and industrial wastes

The environmental regulation evolution and the increasing wastewater disposal costs led to a new concept for the complete destruction of toxic substances and sludges. Hydrothermal oxidation of wastes was developed as an alternative technique in order to limit the risks of secondary pollution. After a brief presentation of previous works dealing with hydrothermal oxidation and supercritical water properties, results concerning two model molecules: methanol and glucose are presented. The oxidation kinetics of methanol is modeled and by-products of glucose characterized. Results concerning industrial wastes such as paper mill sludges, mechanical wastewaters and cutting oils are examined. The influence of various parameters controlling the transformation such as pressure, temperature and residence time are investigated.