Abstract
Laboratory experiments were carried out on the kinetic of the electrochemical degradation of aqueous solutions containing Oxamyl Nematicide of carbamate pesticide. This pesticide is a broad-spectrum insecticide/ nematicide for the control of key pests in field, fruit and vegetable crops. The electrochemical oxidation of oxamyl (Methyl N'N'-dimethyl-N-[(methylcarbamoyl) oxy]-1-thiooxamimidate)), was studied by galvanostatic electrolysis using boron-doped diamond (BDD) as anode. The influence of several operating parameters, such as applied current density, initial oxamyl concentration, temperature, and initial pH value, was investigated. The chemical oxygen demand (COD) measurement during the processing permitted the evaluation of the kinetic of organic matter decay and the instantaneous current efficiency. The experimental results showed that the electrochemical process was suitable for almost completely removing COD, due to the production of hydroxyl radicals on the diamond surface. In particular, the COD removal follows a pseudo first-order kinetics and the apparent rate constant increased with temperature, and by applied current while it is almost unaffected by pH.