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Study Project - Environmental Engineering : Setup and development of a sulfate radical oxidation treatment system using a manganese (II) oxide-based catalyst to remove Trace Organic Chemicals (TOrCs).

05.08.2024, Studentische Hilfskräfte, Praktikantenstellen, Studienarbeiten

A Study Project is available at the Chair of Urban Water Systems Engineering in the Advanced Wastewater Treatment Group. The topic focuses on setup and preliminary experimentation for removing trace organic chemicals (TOrCs) through a sulfate radical oxidation.

Background

With ever-increasing concern over the presence and spread of Trace Organic Chemicals (TOrCS) and anti-microbial resistance genes (ARGs) in the wastewater matrix, investigations into quartenary treatment stage in wastewater treatment plant has become a necessity. The spread of TOrCs and ARGs constitute an impact for agriculture and also pose health hazards for humans and animals alike. Conventional treatment steps such as Ozonation, UV/H2O2, and biodegradation steps are researched and employed as a treatment step. Further advanced oxidation processes involve the use of radicals to target TOrCs and remove them, however, there are drawbacks or insufficient selectivity between radicals, and alternative and economic technologies are required to remove these targets. Bein, Yecheskel et al. (2023) developed a sulfate radical oxidation system through a packed column, which presented promising results in selective removal of TOrCs. This was used as a proof of concept for a follow-up project and requires further development, analysis and optimization, before it can be scaled up and benchmarked against existing quaternary-stage treatment systems. (Bein, Seiwert, et al., 2023; Bein, Yecheskel, et al., 2023)

The goal
This master’s thesis focuses on the development and optimization of the catalytic filtration system (CFC) through multi-variable analysis of TOrCs’ removal under different operational and experimental conditions. The goal is to obtain the optimal removal of TOrCs and determine the optimal column packaging, while considering the levels of Sulfate ions, residue PMS, and Manganese leaching in the effluent stream.

Tasks
• Assist in setup and preliminary analysis of the catalytic filtration system to establish a
baseline.
• Synthesize MnO2 on the support medium through hydrothermal synthesis.
• Plan experimental design to test different operational and experimental conditions for
catalytic filtration (flowrates, concentrations, column packaging, etc.).
• Use control experiments to determine performance of the experiments.
• Conduct catalytic filtration experiments (core workload of the lab tasks).
• Establish performance difference between narrower and wider columns.
• Investigate removal rates of TOrCs through the catalytic filtration column systems through TOrCs analysis.

Skillset
• Background in Environmental or Chemistry or Chemical Engineering.
• Knowledge in statistical analysis
• Programming language skills are an added bonus.
• Experience in laboratory task (please highlight which course or if you have work experience)

Timeline and application

The study project can be initiated once the initial system has been assembled and will last for 6 months, constituting for 360 working hours (including data analysis and writing) as per TUM regulations.

If you are interested, please contact me with the following documentation by 18th August 2024:
1. Curriculum Vitae,
2. Cover letter detailing your motivation and how you fit into this role (ideas are a plus) and a,
3. Grade Report.

Contact
Mohammad Shehryaar Khan, M.Sc.
Chair of Urban Water Systems Engineering
Email: shehryaar.khan@tum.de
http://www.cee.ed.tum.de/sww


References

Bein, E., Seiwert, B., Reemtsma, T., Drewes, J. E., & Hübner, U. (2023). Advanced oxidation processes for removal of monocyclic aromatic hydrocarbon from water: Effects of O3/H2O2 and UV/H2O2 treatment on product formation and biological post-treatment. Journal of Hazardous Materials, 450, 131066. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2023.131066

Bein, E., Yecheskel, Y., Zucker, I., Drewes, J. E., & Hübner, U. (2023). A novel catalytic filtration process using MnO2@sand and peroxymonosulfate for unselective removal of organic contaminants from water. Chemical Engineering Journal, 476, 146636. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cej.2023.146636

Kontakt: shehryaar.khan@tum.de