Abstract

Anodic oxidation reaction was applied to remove trihalomethanes in an aqueous solution. Each component was determined by using solid phase microextraction(SPME) fiber and GC-ECD. Anodic and cathodic compartments were separated in order to protect contaminants and connected by <TEX>$KNO_3$</TEX>-agar bridge. The calibration graphs of the 6 THM components were shown good linearlity from a few ppb up to a few hundreds ppb concentration level. Anodes such as platinum(Pt), titanium(Ti). zircornium(Zr), titanium metal coated with iridium(Ti-Ir), and glassy carbon coated with mixed valence ruthenium(mv Ru) were tried to remove the THMs at different potentials. The best result was obtained on the Ti-Ir anode applied 9 volts DC. The electrode could effectively remove almost all the THM components from the stirring solution within about 1.5 hours. The glassy carbon electrode coated with mixed valence ruthenium showed excellent removing effect at the begining, but the maximum removing level was remained at 60% probably due to the destruction of the electrode surface. The concentration of chloroform, however, tends to be increased due to the electrode reaction producing the component at the condition.