Sonochemical degradation of brilliant cresyl blue - an ecofriendly approach

Department of Chemistry, University College of Science, Mohanlal Sukhadia University, Udaipur-313 001,

Rajasthan, India

E-mail : ameta_sc@yahoo.com

Manuscript received 10 August 2007. revised 28 February 2008. accepted 27 March 2008

Dyestuffs which are often present in industrial waste water may have a serious impact on the environment as well as on the health of human beings. This report describes an eco-friendly method which has been developed for the degradation of brilliant cresyl blue. Ultrasonic frequency of 4 MHz was used for all experiments in order to find the best conditions for degradation. The effect of operating variables like pH, concentration of dye, solvent composition, temperature, nature and concentration of surfactant etc. on the reaction rate has been observed. The progress of the sonochemical degradation was monitored spectrphotometrically. The value of energy of activation was also computed for this sonochemical degradation. A suitable tentative mechanism for sonochemical degradation of brilliant cresyl blue has also been proposed.