Tidiane DIOP^1,, Ndeye Khady MBAYE¹, Mariama BAKHOUM¹, Mor DIOP², Adrienne NDIOLENE¹, Mouhamadou Abdoulaye DIALLO¹

Delinting units or cotton seed production plants generate effluents heavily loaded with persistent organic matter derived from cottonseed linters. To protect the environment, it is essential to develop treatment techniques that are effective, economical, and environmentally friendly. Advanced Oxidation Processes (AOPs) using the Fenton reagent have proven capable of efficiently removing recalcitrant organic pollutants with minimal ecological impact. The objective of this study is to treat wastewater generated by the chemical delinting unit using an advanced oxidation process based on the Fenton reagent, in a context where environmental standards are becoming increasingly stringent. The adopted methodology first involved characterizing the wastewater. Then, the Fenton reagent was prepared from anhydrous ferric chloride (FeCl₃) and hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂). Finally, batch treatment tests were conducted. To evaluate the treatment performance, several physicochemical parameters of the wastewater were analyzed, including pH, Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD), Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD₅), turbidity, color, electrical conductivity, total phosphorus, total nitrogen, and suspended solids content. The results of the treatment tests demonstrated a remarkable performance of the process, with removal efficiencies of 98.71% for suspended solids, 94.36% for color, 90.83% for total nitrogen, 87.22% for total phosphorus, 99.93% for COD, and 100% for BOD₅. The Fenton reagent proved to be highly effective, allowing significant depollution of the contaminated water while ensuring compliance with the Senegalese discharge standard NS 05-061.These encouraging results provide a solid basis for considering large-scale application of this process for the treatment of effluents from chemical delinting units.

Advanced Oxidation, Fenton Reagent, Wastewater Treatment, Delinting