Sonolytic degradation of acetic acid in aqueous solutions.

In this work, ultrasonic degradation of acetic acid, which is one of the most resistant carboxylic acids to oxidize, was investigated. The effects of parameters such as ultrasonic power, initial concentration, addition of NaCl or several oxides were studied on the degradation of acetic acid. Acetic acid was sonicated indirectly using an ultrasonic bath with 40 kHz. It was observed that degradation degree increased with decreasing power and initial concentration and with increasing NaCl concentration. Initial degradation degree was enhanced with addition of zeolite and SiO(2).