Reclaimation of petroleum-based wastewater by noval ozone immobilized biological activated carbon process

Wastewater reclamation in the petroleum industries in Northern China is important because of the shortage of water resource. Conventional treatment technology used：in treating petroleum-based wastewater, namely the 3-phase biological process, typically removes COD, BODI grease, volatile hydrobenzenes, cyanides, sulfides and suspended solids. However, the process is often ineffective in ammonia-nitrogen removal, and thus the treated effluent quantity can＇ t meet the required standards for reuse. This paper investigated a novel ozone immobilized biological activated carbon（O3-IBAC） process for ammonia nitrogen removal from petroleum-based wastewater. Operated at a HRT （ Hydraulic Retention Time） of 15 minutes in IBACI and 27 minutes in IBAC2, the O3-IBAC process achieved ammonia nitrogen removal efficiency of 91%. In addition, the removal efficiencies 6f COD, volatile hydrobenzenes, suspended solids, turbidity and petroleum-based micropollutants were all above 90%. Competition between the autotrophs and heterotrophs was observed, which was indicated by an increase of ammonia nitrogen removal with a decrease of COD removal, and vise versa. Nitrite accumulation in IBACI followed by erobic shortcut denitrification in IBAC2 led to 28% of the Total Nitrogen removal efficiency. Pollutant reduction in＇ the IBAC process was achieved by a rapid physical adsorption and biodegradation on the activated carbon, which effectively retained the pollutants in the system despite the short hydraulic retention time.

Pilot plant study on ozonation and biological activated carbon process for drinking water treatment

A study on advanced drinking water treatment was conducted in a pilot scale plant taking water from conventional treatment process. Ozonation-biological activated carbon process （O3-BAC） and granular activated carbon process （GAC） were evaluated based on the following parameters： CODMn, UV254, total organic carbon （TOC）, assimilable organic carbon （AOC） and biodegradable dissolved organic carbon （BDOC）. In this test, the average removal rates of CODMn, UV254 and TOC in O3-BAC were 18.2%, 9.0% and 10.2% higher on （AOC） than in GAC, respectively. Ozonation increased 19.3-57.6 μg Acetate-C/L in AOC-P17, 45.6-130.6 μg Acetate-C/L in AOC-NOX and 0.1-0.5 mg/L in BDOC with ozone doses of 2 8 mg/L. The optimum ozone dose for maximum AOC formation was 3 mgO3/L. BAC filtration was effective process to improve biostability.

Comparison Between Dielectric Barrier Discharge Plasma and Ozone Regenerations of Activated Carbon Exhausted with Pentachlorophenol

In this study, two regeneration methods （dielectric barrier discharge （DBD） plasma and ozone （03） regeneration） of saturated granular activated carbon （GAC） with pentachlorophe- nol （PCP） were compared. The results show that the two regeneration methods can eliminate contaminants from GAC and recover its adsorption properties to some extent. Comparing the DBD plasma with 03 regeneration, the adsorption rate and the capacity of the GAC samples after DBD plasma regeneration are greater than those after 03 regeneration. 03 regeneration decreases the specific surface area of GAC and increases the acidic surface oxygen groups on the surface of GAC, which causes a decrease in PCP on GAC uptake. With increasing regeneration cy- cles, the regeneration efficiencies of the two methods decrease, but the decrease in the regeneration efficiencies of GAC after 03 regeneration is very obvious compared with that after DBD plasma regeneration. Furthermore, the equilibrium data were fitted by the Freundlich and Langmuir models using the non-linear regression technique, and all the adsorption equilibrium isotherms fit the Langmuir model fairly well, which demonstrates that the DBD plasma and ozone regeneration processes do not appear to modify the adsorption process, but to shift the equilibrium towards lower adsorption concentrations. Analyses of the weight loss of GAC show that 03 regeneration has a lower weight loss than DBD plasma regeneration.

Catalytic ozonation of phenol and oxalic acid with copper-loaded activated carbon

A novel heterogeneous catalytic ozonation process in water treatment was studied, with a copper-loaded activated carbon （Cu/AC） that was prepared by an incipient wetness impregnation method at low temperature and tested as a catalyst in the ozonation of phenol and oxalic acid. Cu/AC was characterized using XRD, BET and SEM techniques. Compared with ozonation alone, the presence of Cu/AC in the ozonation processes significantly improves the degradation of phenol or oxalic acid. With the introduction of the hydroxyl radical scavenger, i.e., turt-butanol alcohol （t-BuOH）, the degradation efficiency of both phenol and oxalic acid in the Cu/AC catalyzed ozonation process decreases by 22% at 30 min. This indicates that Cu/AC accelerates ozone decomposition into certain concentration of hydroxyl radicals. The amount of Cu（II ） produced during the reaction of Cu/AC-catalyzed ozonation of phenol or oxalic acid is very small, which shows that the two processes are both heterogeneous catalytic ozonation reactions.

Enhanced biological nutrient removal in modified carbon source division anaerobic anoxic oxic process with return activated sludge pre-concentration

A pilot-scale modified carbon source division anaerobic anoxic oxic(AAO) process with pre-concentration of returned activated sludge(RAS) was proposed in this study for the enhanced biological nutrient removal(BNR) of municipal wastewater with limited carbon source. The influent carbon source was fed in step while a novel RAS pre-concentration tank was adopted to improve BNR efficiency, and the effects of an influent carbon source distribution ratio and a RAS pre-concentration ratio were investigated. The results show that the removal efficiency of TN is mainly influenced by the carbon source distribution ratio while the TP removal relies on the RAS pre-concentration ratio. The optimum carbon source distribution ratio and RAS pre-concentration ratio are 60% and 50%, respectively, with an inner recycling ratio of 100% under the optimum steady operation of pilot test, reaching an average effluent TN concentration of 9.8 mg·L-1with a removal efficiency of 63% and an average TP removal efficiency of 94%. The mechanism of nutrient removal is discussed and the kinetics is analyzed. The results reveal that the optimal carbon source distribution ratio provides sufficient denitrifying carbon source to each anoxic phase, reducing nitrate accumulation while the RAS pre-concentration ratio improves the condition of anaerobic zone to ensure the phosphorus release due to less nitrate in the returned sludge. Therefore, nitrifying bacteria, denitrifying bacteria and phosphorus accumulation organisms play an important role under the optimum condition, enhancing the performance of nutrient removal in this test.

Processes for the Clarification of the Crude Oil of Baobab Seeds Extracted by Pressing on Activated Carbon Elaborated from the Capsules of the Fruit (Adansonia digitata L.)

The baobab, Adansonia digitata L. plays an important role in the economy of local populations. The oil from the seeds of the baobab fruit is nowadays highly prized because of its numerous cosmetic and therapeutic applications and its composition of unsaturated fatty acids, sterols and tocopherols. However, unlike refined oils, locally extracted baobab oil has not undergone purification operations to ensure its quality. Only a filtration on special cloths is carried out after decantation. Indeed, the oil obtained after pressing is cloudy because of the presence of various impurities. It therefore requires treatment operations to make it more attractive and of higher quality. Therefore, in order to provide innovative solutions to local companies to improve the quality of vegetable oils, a study of clarification (treatment) of crude oil is necessary. An experimental device has been developed in the laboratory. It includes a glass column and a filter bed of dune sand and activated carbon. This study has shown the efficiency of the experimental device. Indeed, the activated carbon, thanks to its adsorbing power, has allowed a significant decrease in turbidity at the 5% threshold, from 14.61 NTU for the raw oil to 0.08 NTU for the oil filtered on 3% carbon and 0.033 NTU for the oil filtered on 5% carbon. That is to say an abatement higher than 95%. This decrease in turbidity could be correlated with the decrease in brown index from 187.39a for the initial crude oil to 128.53d for the oil treated with 3% activated carbon versus 187.59a for the oil filtered on cloths. The lowest brown index was observed with the filtration using 5% activated carbon (35.99b). Thus, for the yellowness index, only the filtration on 5% charcoal allowed to obtain a significant decrease in yellowness. The yellowing index of the oil with 5% was 44.67b against 79.04a for the oil filtered with 3% activated carbon, 86.33a for the crude oil and 86.46a for the oil filtered on cloths. Finally, the oil sample treated with 5% activated carbon had the clearest clarity than the other samples with a clarity (L) equal to 97.98c against 95.63d for the oil treated with 3% carbon and 94.99b for the oil filtered on filter cloths. According to the results obtained, the experimental device made it possible to obtain a clearer baobab oil with a low brown index, thus improving the sensory quality of the oil.

Effect of powdered activated carbon on Chinese traditional medicine wastewater treatment in submerged membrane bioreactor with electronic control backwashing

Chinese traditional medicine wastewater, rich in macromolecule and easy to foam in aerobic biodegradation such as Glycosides, was treated by two identical bench-scale aerobic submerged membrane bioreactors （SMBRs） operated in parallel under the same feed, equipped with the same electronic control backwashing device. One was used as the control SMBR （CSMBR） while the other was dosed with powdered activated carbon （PAC） （PAC-amended SMBR, PSMBR）. The backwashing interval was 5 min. One suction period was about 90 min by adjusting preestablished backwashing vacuum and pump frequency. The average flux of CSMBR during a steady periodic state of 24 d （576 h） was 5.87 L/h with average hydraulic residence time （HRT） of 5.97 h and that of PSMBR during a steady periodic state of 30 d （720 h） was 5.85 L/h with average HRT of 5.99 h. The average total chemical oxygen demand （COD） removal efficiency of CSMBR was 89.29% with average organic loading rate （OLR） at 4.16 kg COD/（m^3.d） while that of PSMBR was 89.79% with average OLR at 5.50 kg COD/（m^3.d）. COD concentration in the effluent of both SMBRs achieved the second level of the general wastewater effluent standard GB8978-1996 for the raw medicine material industry （300 mg/L）. Hence, SMBR with electronic control backwashing was a viable process for medium-strength Chinese traditional medicine wastewater treatment. Moreover, the increasing rates of preestablished backwashing vacuum, pump frequency, and vacuum and flux loss caused by mixed liquor in PSMBR all lagged compared to those in CSMBR; thus the actual operating time of the PSMBR system without membrane cleaning was extended by up to 1.25 times in contrast with the CSMBR system, and the average total COD removal efficiency of PSMBR was enhanced with higher average OLR.

Granular activated carbons from palm nut shells for gold di-cyanide adsorption

Granular activated carbons were produced from palm nut shells by physical activation with steam. The proximate analysis of palm nut shells was investigated by thermogravimetric analysis, and the adsorption capacity of the activated carbons, produced as a result of shell pyrolysis at 600℃ followed by steam activation at 900℃ in varying activation times, was evaluated using nitrogen adsorption at 77 K. Applicability of the activated carbons for gold dicyanide adsorption was also investigated. Increasing the activation hold time with the attendant increase in the degree of carbon burn-off results in a progressive increase in the surface area of the activated carbons, reaching a value of 903.1 m2/g after activation for 6 h. The volumes of total pores, mieropores, and mesopores in the activated carbons also increase progressively with the increasing degree of carbon burn-off, resulting from increasing the activation hold time. The gold di-cyanide adsorption of the activated carbons increases with the rise of pore volume of the activated carbons. The gold di-cyanide adsorption of palm nut shell activated carbon obtained after 6-h activation at 900℃ is superior to that of a commercial activated carbon used for gold di-cyanide adsorption.

Optimization Conditions of the Preparation of Activated Carbon Based Egusi (<i>Cucumeropsis mannii</i>Naudin) Seed Shells for Nitrate Ions Removal from Wastewater

Egusi seed shells (ESS) were used as precursor for the preparation of two activated carbons (ACs) following H3PO4 and ZnCl2 activation. The effect of factors controlling the preparation of ACs such as chemical activating agent concentration (2 - 10 M), activation temperature (400°C - 700°C) and residence time (30 - 120 min) were optimized using the Box-Behnken Design (BBD). The optimized activated carbons based H3PO4 (ACP) and ZnCl2 (ACZ) were characterized by N2 adsorption, elemental analysis, atomic force microscopy (AFM), Boehm titration and Fourier transformed infrared (FTIR) techniques. The specific surface area was found to be 1053.91 and 1009.89 m2·g-1 for ACP and ACZ respectively. The adsorbents had similar surface functionalities and were both microporous. The effect of various parameters such as initial pH, concentration, and contact time on the adsorption of nitrate ions on ACP and ACZ in aqueous solution was studied. ACZ demonstrated better adsorption capacity (8.26 mg·g-1) compared to ACP (5.65 mg·g-1) at the same equilibrium time of 20 min. The adsorption process was governed by a “physical interactions” phenomenon for both adsorbents.

Study on Treatment of the Pesticide Wastewater by the Composite Process of Biological Active Carbon Filter-Fluid Bed

[ Objectlve] The research aimed to study treatment effect of the pesticide wastewater by the composite process of biological active car- bon filter-fluid bed. [Method] The composite process of biological active carbon filter- fluid bed was applied to treat the mixed pesticide wastewater. The removal efficiencies of CODcr, BODs, NH3-N, SS and the influence factors were investigated. [ Result] The composite process had good treatment efficiency for pesticide wastewater. After running stably, the average removal rates of CODc,, BODs, NH3-N and SS were re- spectively 91.6%, 96.2%, 90.2% and 87.5%. All indices reached the third level cdteda specified in Comprehensive Standard of the Sewage Dis- charge （DB12/356-2008）. [ Conclusionl The whole system operates reliably and simply, and provides a stable, convenient and economical solu- tion for deep treatment of the mixed pesticide wastewater.

Impact of Powdered Activated Carbon and Anion Exchange Resin on Photocatalytic Treatment of Textile Wastewater

In order to clarify the impact of activated carbon and anion exchange resin on photocatalytic oxidation (PCO) of textile industry wastewater, TiO2-based PCO was investigated with aqueous solutions containing the reactive dye Reactive Blue 4 (RB4) and with a textile dye house effluent in the absence and in the presence of powdered activated carbon (PAC) and the anion exchange resin Lewatit MP 500. Addition of Lewatit improved RB4 removal to a larger extent than PAC addition. Contrasting to chloride and sulfate, hydrogen carbonate clearly inhibited PCO of RB4. However, the depression of dye removal by hydrogen carbonate was minute in the presence of Lewatit although the hydrogen carbonate concentration was not markedly decreased. Unfortunately, the beneficial effect of Lewatit addition on PCO nearly disappeared when the Lewatit/TiO2 mixture was reused three times. This was probably caused by oxidative damage of the resin. Color removal from the real dye house effluent during PCO was improved by Lewatit, but not by PAC. Contrastingly, PAC addition increased TOC removal by PCO from the real wastewater to some extent, while Lewatit had no impact. Sorbent addition does not lead to an acceptable area demand for solar PCO of the dye house effluent.

The Influence of Dry or Wet Activating Process to the Electrochemical Features of Biowaste Carbon

The utilization of biowaste to the activated carbon(AC)as electrode material is conducive to alleviating the energy crisis and promoting the high value-added.The popular KOH activation has been applied for years,but rare report clarified the difference of dry and wet activation,with which the batch producing technique could be different.Here nitrogen doped hierarchical AC was derived from wood chip by a wet or dry KOH activation.The surface area,framework structure and surface feature were characterized to reveal the effect of wet and dry activation.1.44 at%of nitrogen doped AC was made by dry KOH activation,which was higher than the AC derived from wet KOH activation with 1.36 at%of nitrogen.Their electrochemical properties were investigated in 6 mol L^(-1)of KOH,the capacitance of wAC was 401 F g^(-1)at 0.5 A g^(-1),but dAC possessed a capacitance of 215 F g^(-1).These indicated that AC obtained by using wet KOH activation displayed a potential application in energy field.

Effects of Co_3O_4 nanocatalyst morphology on CO oxidation:Synthesis process map and catalytic activity

This study focuses on drawing a hydrothermal synthesis process map for Co3O4 nanoparticles with various morphologies and investigating the effects of Co3O4 nanocatalyst morphology on CO oxidation.A series of cobalt-hydroxide-carbonate nanoparticles with various morphologies（i.e.,nanorods,nanosheets,and nanocubes） were successfully synthesized,and Co3O4 nanoparticles were obtained by thermal decomposition of the cobalt-hydroxide-carbonate precursors.The results suggest that the cobalt source is a key factor for controlling the morphology of cobalt-hydroxide-carbonate at relatively low hydrothermal temperatures（≤ 140℃）.Nanorods can be synthesized in CoCl2 solution,while Co（NO3）2 solution promotes the formation of nanosheets.Further increasing the synthesis temperature（higher than 140 ℃） results in the formation of nanocubes in either Co（NO3）2 or CoCl2 solution.The reaction time only affects the size of the obtained nanoparticles.The presence of CTAB could improve the uniformity and dispersion of particles.Co3O4 nanosheets showed much higher catalytic activity for CO oxidation than nanorods and nanocubes because it has more abundant Co^（3＋） on the surface,much higher reducibility,and better oxygen desorption capacity.

Effect of ozone on the performance of a hybrid ceramic membrane-biological activated carbon process

Two hybrid processes including ozonation-ceramic membrane-biological activated carbon （BAC） （Process A） and ceramic membrane-BAC （Process B） were compared to treat polluted raw water. The performance of hybrid processes was evaluated with the removal efficiencies of turbidity, ammonia and organic matter. The results indicated that more than 99% of particle count was removed by both hybrid processes and ozonation had no significant effect on its removal. BAC filtration greatly improved the removal of ammonia. Increasing the dissolved oxygen to 30.0 mg/L could lead to a removal of ammonia with concentrations as high as 7.80 mg/L and 8.69 mg/L for Processes A and B, respectively. The average removal efficiencies of total organic carbon and ultraviolet absorbance at 254 nm （UV254, a parameter indicating organic matter with aromatic structure） were 49% and 52% for Process A, 51% and 48% for Process B, respectively. Some organic matter was oxidized by ozone and this resulted in reduced membrane fouling and increased membrane flux by 25%-30%. However, pre-ozonation altered the components of the raw water and affected the microorganisms in the BAC, which may impact the removals of organic matter and nitrite negatively.

Optimized Synthesis of Carbon Aerogels via Ambient Pressure Drying Process as Electrode for Supercapacitors

Carbon aerogels were synthesized via ambient pressure drying process using resorcinolformaldehyde as precursor and P123 to strengthen their skeletons. CO2 activation technology was implemented to improve surface areas and adjust pore size distribution. The synthesis process was optimized, and the morphology, structure, adsorption properties and electrochemical behavior of different samples were characterized. The CO2-activated samples achieved a high specific capacitance of 129.2 F/g in 6 M KOH electrolytes at the current density of 1 m A/cm^2 within the voltage range of 0-0.8 V. The optimized activation temperature and duration were determined to be 950 ℃ and 4 h, respectively.

Catalytic decomposition of low level ozone with gold nanoparticles supported on activated carbon

Highly dispersed gold nanoparticles were supported on coal-based activated carbon(AC)by a sol immobilization method and were used to investigate their catalytic activity for low-level ozone decomposition at ambient temperature.Nitrogen adsorption-desorption,scanning electron microscope(SEM),and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy(XPS)were used to characterize the catalysts before and after ozone decomposition.The results showed that the supported gold nanoparticles prepared with microwave heating were much smaller and more uniformly dispersed on the activated carbon than those prepared with traditional conduction heating,exhibiting higher catalytic activity for ozone decomposition.The pH values of gold precursor solution significantly influenced the catalytic activity of supported gold for ozone decomposition,and the best pH value was 8.In the case of space velocity of 120000 h–1,inlet ozone concentration of 50 mg/m3,and relative humidity of 45%,the Au/AC catalyst maintained the ozone removal ratio at 90.7%after 2500 min.After being used for ozone decomposition,the surface carbon of the catalyst was partly oxidized and the oxygen content increased accordingly,while its specific surface area and pore volume only decreased a little.Ozone was mainly catalytically decomposed by the gold nanoparticles supported on the activated carbon.

Mineralization of phenol by ozone combined with activated carbon:Performance and mechanism under different pH levels

The degradation of phenol using ozone with activated carbon(O_(3)/AC system)was investigated in this study.The O_(3)/AC system was also compared with the single O_(3) and AC systems.The total organic carbon(TOC)removal efficiency in the O_(3)/AC system was roughly 26%and 30%higher than the single AC and O_(3) systems,respectively.It was demonstrated that the phenol degradation rate and TOC removal efficiency were significantly affected by the ozone concentration,AC dosage,and solution pH.The pseudo-first-order and pseudo-second-order kinetic models were fitted to identify the mechanisms of the phenol removal process.The results of Scanning Electron Microscopy,Brunauer-Emmett-Teller,and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy of raw and used AC indicated that the surface morphology,microstructure,and functional group properties had been changed during the reaction process.The possible O_(3)/AC system mineralization mechanism for phenol removal was tentatively proposed using scavenging active species such as·OH,O_(2)^(·-),and H_(2)O_(2).The transformation byproducts generated during the application of the O_(3)/AC system were identified by High Performance Liquid Chromatography and Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry analyses.Therefore,the mineralization pathway of phenol in detail was proposed in acidic(pH 3.0)and alkaline(pH 11.0)conditions.This study provided a more systematic explanation of the mineralization mechanism for phenol in the O_(3)/AC system.

Disinfection byproduct formation from algal organic matters after ozonation or ozone combined with activated carbon treatment with subsequent chlorination

Algal organic matter(AOM),including extracellular organic matter(EOM)and intracellular organic matter(IOM)from algal blooms,is widely accepted as essential precursors of disinfection byproducts(DBPs).This study evaluated the effect of ozonation or ozone combined with activated carbon(O_(3)-AC)treatment on characteristic alternation and DBP formation with subsequent chlorination of Chlorella sp..The effects of p H and bromide concentration on DBP formation by ozonation or O_(3)-AC treatment were also investigated.Results showed that the potential formation of DBPs might be attributed to ozonation,but these DBP precursors could be further removed by activated carbon(AC)treatment.Moreover,the formation of target DBPs was controlled at acidic pH by alleviating the reactions between chlorine and AOM.Besides,the bromide substitution factor(BSF)value of trihalomethanes(THMs)from EOM and IOM remained constant after AC treatment.However,THM precursors could be significantly decreased by AC treatment.The above results indicated that O_(3)-AC was a feasible treatment method for algal-impacted water.

Vacuum pressure swing adsorption process for coalbed methane enrichment

The enrichment of low concentration coalbed methane using adsorption process with activated carbon adsorbent was studied in this work.Adsorption isotherms of methane,nitrogen and carbon dioxide on activated carbon were measured by volumetric method,meanwhile a series of breakthrough tests with single component,binary components and three components feed mixture has been performed for exploring dynamic adsorption behaviors.Moreover,a rigorous mathematical model of adsorption bed containing mass,energy,and momentum conservation equation as well as dualsite Langmuir model with the Linear driving force model for gassolid phase mass transfer has been proposed for numerical modeling and simulation of fixed bed breakthrough process and vacuum pressure swing adsorption process.Furthermore,the lumped mass transfer coefficient of methane,nitrogen and carbon dioxide on activated carbon adsorbent has been determined to be 0.3 s^(-1),1.0 s^(-1) and 0.06 s^(-1) by fitting the breakthrough curves using numerical calculation.Additionally,a six bed VPSA process with twelve step cycle sequence has been proposed and investigated for low concentration coalbed methane enrichment.Results demonstrated that the methane molar fraction in feed mixture ranged from 10%to 50%could be enriched to 32.15%to 88.75%methane in heavy product gas with a methane recovery higher than 83%under the adsorption pressure of 3 bar(1 bar=105 Pa)and desorption pressure of 0.1 bar.Energy consumption of this VPSA process was varied from 0.165 k·W·h·m^(-3) CH_(4)to 0.649 k·W·h·m^(-3) CH_(4).Finally,a dualstage VPSA process has been successfully developed to upgrade a low concentration coalbed methane containing 20%methane to a target product gas with methane purity higher than 90%,meanwhile the total methane recovery was up to 98.71%with a total energy consumption of 0.504 k·W·h·m^(-3)CH_(4).

Activated carbon enhanced ozonation of oxalate attributed to HO·oxidation in bulk solution and surface oxidation: Effect of activated carbon dosage and pH

Ozonation of oxalate in aqueous phase was performed with a commercial activated carbon（AC）in this work. The effect of AC dosage and solution pH on the contribution of hydroxyl radicals（HOU） in bulk solution and oxidation on the AC surface to the removal of oxalate was studied. We found that the removal of oxalate was reduced by tert-butyl alcohol（tBA） with low dosages of AC,while it was hardly affected by tBA when the AC dosage was greater than 0.3 g/L. tBA also inhibited ozone decomposition when the AC dosage was no more than 0.05 g/L, but it did not work when the AC dosage was no less than 0.1 g/L. These observations indicate that HOUin bulk solution and oxidation on the AC surface both contribute to the removal of oxalate. HOU oxidation in bulk solution is significant when the dosage of AC is low, whereas surface oxidation is dominant when the dosage of AC is high. The oxalate removal decreased with increasing pH of the solution with an AC dosage of 0.5 g/L. The degradation of oxalate occurs mainly through surface oxidation in acid and neutral solution, but through HOUoxidation in basic bulk solution. A mechanism involving both HOUoxidation in bulk solution and surface oxidation was proposed for AC enhanced ozonation of oxalate.