Evaluation of Henry's Law Constant and Freundlich Adsorption Constant for VOCs

The U.S Environmental Protection Agency has identified packed tower aeration (PTA) and granular activated carbon (GAC) adsorption as the best available technology for treatment of currently regulated carcinogenic volatile organic compounds (cVOCs). To assess the feasibility of using PTA and GAC treatment processes for meeting future requirements of a new cVOC rule, accurate knowledge about Henry's Law constants and Freundlich adsorption constants is required. Therefore, the objectives of this study were to: (1) determine the effects of temperature and background water quality on Henry's Law constants describing cVOC partitioning between air and water; and (2) determine the effects of temperature, background water quality, and GAC type on Freundlich adsorption constants describing cVOC adsorption by GAC at regulatory relevant concentrations (low parts per billion levels). Published in 2017.