Abstract:
A high-energy electron beam can be used to treat both the biological aspect (elimination of various microorganisms) and chemical aspect (degradation of large and complex molecules to smaller ones) of wastewater at the same time. In this research, high-energy electron beam technology was applied to remove reactive dyes in textile wastewater because it is a popular fabric dye with high environmental stability and resistance to washing and elimination. In this study, water samples with each of the 6 reactive dye colors, namely red, yellow, blue, pink, sky blue, and black, were synthesized. Actual effluent sample were also collected from a fabric dyeing factory in Sampran District, Nakhon Pathom Province. The sample was irradiated with a 10 MeV high-energy electron beam at the Thailand Institute of Nuclear Technology (Public Organization) at different doses. The results demonstrated that color intensity, pH, COD, BOD5, and TDS decreased with increasing doses and that the radiation dose of 10 kGy was able to remove ~92% of color in the synthesized water, while the actual effluent from the fabric dyeing factory required a higher dose of 50 kGy to achieve 80% color removal. These results show the potential of using high-energy electron beam technology to remove reactive dyes. This is a highly environmentally friendly technology because it does not require any chemicals for the treatment ; therefore, no chemical is released into the environment. This technology restores the cleanliness and safety of water to be released into the environment, which will benefit the people sustainably.