Analysis of molecular transformation mechanisms during electrocoagulation of MTO wastewater based on FT-ICR MS

FENG Wanting; WEI Qi; CHEN Cai; BAI Jinhao; LÜ Wenjie; WANG Hualin

doi:10.13205/j.hjgc.202610002

Volume 44 Issue 10

Oct. 2026

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FENG Wanting, WEI Qi, CHEN Cai, BAI Jinhao, LÜ Wenjie, WANG Hualin. Analysis of molecular transformation mechanisms during electrocoagulation of MTO wastewater based on FT-ICR MS[J]. ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING , 2026, 44(10): 10-20. doi: 10.13205/j.hjgc.202610002

Citation:

FENG Wanting, WEI Qi, CHEN Cai, BAI Jinhao, LÜ Wenjie, WANG Hualin. Analysis of molecular transformation mechanisms during electrocoagulation of MTO wastewater based on FT-ICR MS[J]. ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING , 2026, 44(10): 10-20. doi: 10.13205/j.hjgc.202610002

Citation:

FENG Wanting, WEI Qi, CHEN Cai, BAI Jinhao, LÜ Wenjie, WANG Hualin. Analysis of molecular transformation mechanisms during electrocoagulation of MTO wastewater based on FT-ICR MS[J]. ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING , 2026, 44(10): 10-20. doi: 10.13205/j.hjgc.202610002

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Analysis of molecular transformation mechanisms during electrocoagulation of MTO wastewater based on FT-ICR MS

doi: 10.13205/j.hjgc.202610002

1. College of Mechanical and Power Engineering, East China University of Technology, Shanghai 200237, China;
2. College of Resources and Environmental Engineering, East China University of Technology, Shanghai 200237, China

Received Date: 2025-09-03
Available Online: 2026-11-10

Abstract

Abstract

In this study， electrocoagulation （EC） was coupled with Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry （FT-ICR MS） to elucidate the removal efficiency and organic matter conversion mechanism of methanol-to-olefins （MTO） wastewater from two aspects： macroscopic water quality indicators and molecular structure evolution. Under the optimized conditions of current 2.5 A， electrode spacing 2.0 cm， and conductivity 2.3 mS/cm， the reduction rates of COD， oil content， and turbidity were 72.16%， 68.24%， and 98.36%， respectively. FT-ICR MS results showed that electrocoagulation significantly removed aromatic and condensed aromatic compounds with high carbon numbers and high double-bond equivalents， and shifted the molecular composition towards lower molecular weight， with increased O/C and H/C ratios. Van Krevelen （VK） and Kendrick mass defect analyses revealed that oxidation and dealkylation were the dominant reaction pathways， accompanied by decarboxylation， deamination， and desulfurization. The multi-pathway synergistic effects significantly enhanced the biodegradability of the MTO wastewater. This study provides a molecular-scale theoretical basis for the deep purification of coal chemical wastewater and verifies the applicability and advantages of FT-ICR MS in the analysis of complex wastewater treatment mechanisms.
- electrocoagulation,
- FT-ICR MS,
- MTO wastewater,
- organic matter degradation,
- molecular transformation mechanism

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References(33)

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