Treatment of pulp and paper mill effluent

667-671Pulp and paper mill effluent (COD= 0.7 kg/m3) was treated for the removal of non-biodegradable and toxic compounds by wet air oxidation (WAO) using heterogeneous catalysts. The catalysts include (CuO-ZnO) supported on alumina and ceria as well as lanthanum based perovskites. The activity tests were carried out at 95oC under atmospheric pressure conditions. A maximum COD reduction of 83 per cent for (CuO-ZnO)/CeO2 catalyst was obtained in 2 h reaction time at a catalyst conc. of 5 kg/m3 and the initial pH of wastewater sample at 3.0. LaCoO3 catalyst showed the maximum COD reduction in the basic medium (pH 9.0), whereas the two other catalysts were active in acidic region