Degradation of chlorothalonil by ultrasonic irradiation: Kinetics and impact factors

Factors on degradation of chlorothalonil (CLT) in water by high frequency ultrasonic irradiation were investigated. The effects of initial concentration of chlorothalonil, dosages of tertiary butyl alcohol, humic acid and initial pH value on degradation of chlorothalonil, as well as the reaction mechanism were studied. The results reveal that chlorothalonil could be effectively degradated by ultrasonic irradiation. The reaction constant value kapp decreased from 0.014 1 to 0.010 2 min−1 with the initial concentration increasing from 50 to 400 μg/L during 180 min irradiation. Tertiary butyl alcohol had negative effect on chlorothalonil degradation, while lower concentration of humic acid promoted the sonolysis, and kapp declined with the further concentration increasing. The kapp varied little when the pH value ranged from 3.10 to 10.28. It may be concluded that mechanical and pyrolysis process played main roles on the degradation of chlorothalonil in ultrasonic irradiation rather than ·OH attack. The electrical energy per order (EEo) values for sonolysis degradation of CLT were also calculated to evaluate the cost of the process.