Dechlorination of PCBs in oil transformers by microwaves catalysed by Fe0, glycerol, and NaOH

Dechlorination of Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs), carcinogenic substances used as oil in electrical transformers, remains an environmental challenge. This study aims to investigate the dechlorination of PCBs-contaminated transformer oils using microwave catalytic (Fe⁰, glycerol) pyrolysis and to study the kinetics of PCBs dechlorination. After determining the composition of PCBs-contaminated oil using Gas Chromatography with an Electron Capture Detector (GC-ECD), response surface methodology through a central composite design was used to optimize dechlorination factors (irradiation time, microwave power, NaOH). Finally, a kinetic study of PCBs dechlorination under optimal conditions was conducted. The results showed that the concentration of PCBs in the studied transformer oil was 526 ± 0.01 mg/kg, composed of 14 congeners, with a dominance of hexa-PCBs (70 %) and penta-PCBS (18 %). The optimal PCBs dechlorination yield of 98.87 % was obtained under the following conditions: microwave power of 700 W, irradiation time of 8 min, and 0.3 g of NaOH. The kinetic study showed that PCBs degradation under optimal conditions follows a first-order reaction. These findings suggest that microwave-assisted catalytic pyrolysis is an effective and promising method for PCBs dechlorination in transformer oil, offering a potential solution for environmental remediation.