Catalytic Oxidation of 1,2-Dichlorobenzene over Metal-Supported on ZrO2 Catalysts

Abstract The catalytic oxidation of environmentally unfriendly chlorinated organics is a powerful tool that can be used to completely mineralize these organic compounds. In this study, metals (Mn, Ni, V, and Fe) supported on zirconia have been investigated as catalysts in the oxidation of 1,2-dichlorobenzene. Metal supported on zirconia catalysts were prepared using the wet impregnation method. The catalyst materials were characterized by FT-IR, XRD, SEM–EDX, TEM, BET, and ICP methods. Metals were loaded on ZrO 2 support at varied wt%, 2.5, 5, 7.5, and 10 which were confirmed by ICP-OES and EDX analysis. The XRD patterns of all the metals loaded on ZrO 2 catalysts showed diffraction peaks that belong to the monoclinic phase of ZrO 2 and few that are attributed to the oxides of the metals. The BET surface areas showed a significant decrease as the metal was loaded on ZrO 2 support. The BET surface area of ZrO 2 was 4.91 m 2 /g and when 2.5 and 7.5 wt% Fe was loaded on ZrO 2 the BET surface areas were 4.48 and 3.09 m 2 /g, respectively. All the ozonation reactions of 1,2-dichlorobenzene were conducted in an impinger unit for 24 h. The aliquots were collected after 3, 6, 9, 12, 15, 18, and 24 of ozonation and analyzed using FT-IR and GC–MS analyses. The 7.5% Fe/ZrO 2 was found to have a relatively high catalytic effect toward the conversion of 1,2-dichlorobenzene into mucochloric acid and 3,4-dichloro-2,5-furandione.