Kinetics study of oxidation of chlorinated ethenes with permanganate

The kinetics of oxidation of chlorinated ethenes (CE) with KMnO₄ was studied in phosphate-buffered solutions under pseudo-order, isothermal and zero headspace conditions. The results indicate that the reaction is first order in both the reductant and oxidant. The second order rate constants for the reactions between KMnO₄ and CE at 20 °C are 0.035±0.004 M⁻¹s⁻¹ (PCE), 0.80±0.12 M⁻¹s⁻¹ (TCE), 1.52±0.05 M⁻¹s⁻¹ (cis-DCE), 2.1±0.2 M⁻¹s⁻¹ (1, 1-DCE) and 48.6±0.9 M⁻¹s⁻¹ (trans-DCE), respectively. The activation energy (E_a) for the reaction between KMnO₄ and CE (except vinyl chloride) ranges from 5.8 ± 0.1 kcal/mol to 9.3 ± 0.9 kcal/mol.