Abstract
The oxidative degradation of two dyes and a nonionic surfactant by iron(II) sulphate and hydrogen peroxide (Fenton's reagent) was studied, in the presence of UV irradiation (photo‐Fenton process). The degradation kinetics were followed by measuring the residual total organic carbon (TOC) value as a function of time at different initial TOC concentrations and temperatures. The curves interpolating the kinetic data show that the residual TOC values attained a stable level after a given treatment time; a similar trend was observed in the treatment of some dyehouse effluent samples. Moreover, by fitting experimental data, a first‐order equation was obtained that can explain the kinetic model proposed.