Iron and Metals Removal with Hydrogen Peroxide

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Ferrous iron (Fe+2), often occurs naturally in groundwater sources, and can also be found in industrial process and wastewaters, e.g. steel mills & coal mines (acid mine drainage).

Hydrogen peroxide can be used to quickly oxidize soluble ferrous iron to ferric (Fe+3), forming a rapidly settling ferric hydroxide floc. The resulting floc can be removed with filtering or a clarifier. This reaction is shown below:

2 Fe+2 + H2O2 + 4 OH- → 2 Fe (OH)3 (precip.)

Near neutral to alkaline pH conditions are required for high levels of iron removal.