1,4-Dioxane is well known as a bio-refractory organic material that is difficult to degrade in wastewater by typical treatment processes. The Fered-Fenton process, which is a kind of electrochemical advance oxidation processes, was applied herein to the degradation of 1,4-dioxane in a simulated wastewater sample. An activated carbon sheet was used as a cathodic electrode. Degradation experiments were carried out in a two compartment cell under constant cathodic potential. 1,4-Dioxane at concentrations of 40 and 100 mg L-1 could be degraded to less than 0.5 mg L-1 in 150 and 360 min, respectively. The rate of reduction of Fe3+ on the cathode was proportional to the Fe3+ concentration under a constant cathode potential and was not affected by the presence of 1,4-dioxane and degradation by-products. A kinetic model for 1,4-dioxane degradation was constructed by assuming the participation of three active radicals, i.e., (OH)-O-center dot, HO2 center dot, and SO4 center dot-. Changes in the concentration of 1,4-dioxane and H2O2 could be adequately fitted to the experimental data under various conditions. The determined kinetic parameters clarify that the reactivity of 1,4-dioxane with (OH)-O-center dot is much higher than that of the degradation by-products. From the simulation results, it was found that the concentration of (OH)-O-center dot increases with time in the latter stage of degradation. Accumulation of Fe2+ was also observed, maintaining the Fenton reaction at almost constant rate throughout the reaction. H2O2 was more strongly consumed by Fe2+, (OH)-O-center dot, and SO4 center dot- in the latter stage, even though the H2O2 concentration was much less than that in the initial stage. (C) 2016 Published by Elsevier B.V.