Degradation of aniline by the combined process of ultrasound and hydrogen peroxide (US/H(2)O(2))

Aniline is an aromatic hydrocarbon discharged into the environment through certain industrial effluents, which thereby contaminate water resources. In this study, the performance of an oxidizing agent, hydrogen peroxide (H(2)O(2)) with ultrasound (US) for the removal of aniline from its aqueous solution was examined. The treatability of contaminated effluent using US/H(2)O(2) with a frequency of 50 Hz for the treatment of aniline-contaminated water was investigated. The effects of operational parameters such as H(2)O(2) concentration (0.01–0.07 mol/L), initial aniline concentration (20–120 mg/L), contact time (15–90 min) and pH (3–11) on the degradation of aniline was examined. Optimal H(2)O(2) concentration, initial aniline concentration and contact time were obtained as 0.01 mol/L, 20 mg/L, and 45 min. The degradation process was more efficient at pH of 3. Removal efficiency of 95.91% was achieved at these optimum conditions. The results indicate that the combined US and H(2)O(2) process at optimal conditions can be applied for the degradation of aniline with great efficiency.