TITLE:
Kinetic Studies on Hexavalent Chromium Reduction
AUTHORS:
Ankita Basu, Bidyut Saha
KEYWORDS:
Pollution, Carcinogen, Cr(VI), Oxidation; Kinetics, Surfactant, Electrolyte
JOURNAL NAME:
American Journal of Analytical Chemistry,
Vol.1 No.1,
June
3,
2010
ABSTRACT: r(VI) is a known human carcinogen. It is a wide spread environmental contaminant as it is extensively used in different industry. The kinetic study of reduction of Cr(VI) by a known organic substance, 1-butanol in micellar media have been studied spectrophotometrically. The reduction of Cr(VI) to Cr(III) occurs in a micro- heterogeneous system in cell cytoplasm. As micelles are considered to mimic the cellular membranes, the reduction process occurring in the micellar system is considered as a model to obtain insight in to the reduction process prevailing in body systems. Micellar media is also a probe to establish the mechanistic paths of reduction of Cr(VI) to Cr(III) and the effects of some electrolytes common to a biological systems are studied to establish the proposed reaction mechanism strongly. The overall reaction follows a first order dependency on substrate and hexavalent chromium and second order dependency on hydrogen ion. Suitable surfactant & suitable concentration of electrolyte enhance the rate of the reaction.