Jesús David RAMIREZ PAEZ defended his PhD on June 3rd, 2024.
Place : amphithéâtre 203 du bâtiment W1, à l’Ecole Centrale de Lyon (36 Av. Guy de Collongue, 69134 Écully)
The defense will be in french and behind closed doors. Consequentially, for those who want to participate, I request you to arrive before 01h15PM in order to manage the signature of the respective non disclosure agreement.
Jury :
Rapporteurs :
Mme. KORRI-YOUSSOUFI, Hafsa, Directrice de recherche, Université Paris-Saclay
M. JAMA, Charafeddine, Professeur des universités, Ecole Nationale Supérieure de Chimie de Lille
Examinateurs :
Mme. GONDRAN, Chantal, Professeure des universités, Université Grenoble Alpes
M. EDOUARD, David, Maître de conférences, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1
Encadrement :
M. BREARD, Arnaud, Professeur des universités, Ecole Centrale de Lyon, directeur de thèse
M. HADDOUR, Naoufel, Maître de conférences, Ecole Centrale de Lyon, encadrant
M. FONGARLAND, Pascal, Professeur des universités, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, co-encadrant
Abstract :
The current water stress reinforces the need to reuse wastewater, this requires the reduction of organic micropollutants or eternal pollutants present in water leaving wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). In this context, advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) represent an effective alternative to conventional treatments, but their implementation is proving difficult due to their high energy consumption. Galvano-Fenton (GF) technology is an AOP based on the use of inexpensive iron (or ferrous scrap) electrodes and copper, which through a spontaneous corrosion process and the presence of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) catalyze the Fenton reaction and produce hydroxyl radicals (OH•), capable of degrading persistent pollutants in wastewater without the need for external energy input. The limitations that hinder its implementation in the industry have been clearly identified: the investment costs, the problematic of stocking and handling hydrogen peroxide, and finally the limitations to seize the energy produced in the system. Consequently, the work developed in this thesis has aimed to respond to these questions through different research axes: the first studied the utilization of biochar, a conductive material derived from biomass, as an alternative cathode to minimize the economic and environmental costs of the GF process and the implementation of a flow reactor to bring the technology closer to more realistic applications (continuous treatment). Then the work focused on the identification of alternatives to traditional hydrogen peroxide, exploring two distinct research directions: the first investigated the substitution of hydrogen peroxide with sodium percarbonate and the second concentrated on developing a protocol for the fabrication of air cathodes, capable of reducing ambient oxygen to hydrogen peroxide directly on-site.
Keywords:
Organic micropollutants ; eternal pollutants ; advanced oxidation processes ; Fenton ; wastewater ; biochar ; energy consumption ; operating costs ; air cathodes