In this study, CuFe 2 O 4 /kaolinite catalysts were fabricated through a facile citrate combustion method and were evaluated for their efficiency to activate peroxymonosulfate (PMS) towards the destruction of bisphenol A (BPA). The prepared catalysts were systematically characterized to explore the relationship between their characteristics and catalytic activities. In general, higher specific surface area, larger pore volume, more hydroxyl groups, and more accessible reactive sites of 40%-CuFe 2 O 4 /kaolinite contributed to the greater catalytic activity in peroxymonosulfate activation for BPA degradation compared to bare CuFe 2 O 4 . Monodispersed CuFe 2 O 4 nanoparticles were uniformly anchored on the surface of kaolinite with Fe O Al bond, which prevented leaching of metal ions and contributed to the excellent reusability. The sulfate radicals produced in the CuFe 2 O 4 /kaolinite/PMS system were proved as the predominant radical species through electron spin resonance (ESR) and radical quenching experiments. Based on the results of X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and attenuated total reflectance – Fourier transform infrared spectra (ATR-FTIR), two main possible pathways of sulfate radicals generation were proposed: the generation and decomposition of Cu(II)-(HO)OSO 3 − (Cu(II)/Cu(III) and Cu(III)/Cu(II) redox reaction) and the oxidation of Fe(II). Moreover, the BPA degradation pathway was proposed through the identification of transformation products. This work provides an interesting insight for PMS activation by the high-efficient natural mineral-based catalysts for wastewater reclamation.

Monodispersed CuFe2O4 nanoparticles anchored on natural kaolinite as highly efficient peroxymonosulfate catalyst for bisphenol A degradation

The heterogeneous Fenton-like catalysts biochar modified CuFeO2 (CuFeO2/BC) were fabricated by hydrothermal method without additional chemical reducing agent. The systematic characterization demonstrated that higher CuFeO2 particles dispersion and larger BET surface area of CuFeO2/BC catalyst contributed to higher catalytic activity towards the tetracycline (TC) degradation compared to pure-phase CuFeO2. The optimum conditions for TC removal were 598.63 mg L-1 of CuFeO2/BC-1.0, 57.63 mM of H2O2 and pH = 6.27 according to the result of a response surface methodology based on the central composite design. The CuFeO2/BC-1.0 exhibited an excellent reusability and good stability by recycling degradation. The OH was evidenced to the main active radical by scavenging experiments and electron spin resonance. The XPS revealed that the high catalytic efficiency was attributed to the synergistic effect of Fe3+/Fe2+ and Cu2+/Cu+ redox cycles, and the degradation intermediates of TC and toxicity analysis were evaluated.

High efficiency heterogeneous Fenton-like catalyst biochar modified CuFeO2 for the degradation of tetracycline: Economical synthesis, catalytic performance and mechanism

Tetracycline degradation by persulfate activated with magnetic Cu/CuFe2O4 composite: Efficiency, stability, mechanism and degradation pathway.

Efficient degradation of sulfamethazine with CuCo2O4 spinel nanocatalysts for peroxymonosulfate activation

Benchmarking recent advances and innovative technology approaches of Fenton, photo-Fenton, electro-Fenton, and related processes: A review on the relevance of phenol as model molecule

Supports promote single-atom catalysts toward advanced electrocatalysis

We reported a highly active CuFe2O4 catalyst modified with reduced graphene oxide (CuFe2O4–RGO) by a solvothermal method. The composite catalyst was fully characterized by FTIR, XRD, Raman, TEM, and XPS, which demonstrated that the CuFe2O4 nanoparticles (NPs) with a diameter of approximately 17.8 nm were densely and compactly deposited on the reduced graphene oxide (RGO) sheets. The as-prepared CuFe2O4–RGO composites were used to catalyze phenol hydroxylation for the first time, which exhibited great catalytic activity. The conversion rate of phenol to dihydroxybenzenes reached 35.5% with a selectivity of 95.2% obtained, which is much higher than for reported systems (25.0%). The catalytic activity remained high after six cycles. More importantly, the catalyst can be easily recovered due to its magnetic separability and the organic solvent-free nature of the phenol hydroxylation process. A possible mechanism in phenol hydroxylation by H2O2 over CuFe2O4–RGO20 catalyst was also proposed.

High Catalytic Activity in the Phenol Hydroxylation of Magnetically Separable CuFe2O4–Reduced Graphene Oxide

The electrooxidation of ethylene glycol (EG) is of vital significance for the conversion from biomass energy into electrical energy via direct fuel cells. However, the EG oxidation reaction (EGOR) suffers from poor efficiency due to the limitation of high-performance electrocatalysts for cleaving the C-C bonds. Herein, this limitation is successfully addressed by fabricating the doughnut-shaped Pd-Bi2Te3 heterostructured catalyst. Notably, the heterojunction Pd-Bi2Te3 nanocatalyst has been demonstrated to be highly active toward the EGOR with superb activity and durability, in which a mass activity as high as 2420.8 mA mg-1 is achieved in alkaline media, being 1.7 times higher than that of the commercial Pd/C catalyst. Upon combination of experimental results with mechanism studies, it is indicated that the remarkable EGOR performance is attributed to the enlarged active areas that stemmed from the doughnut-like structure, as well as the strong synergistic effect from Pd-Bi2Te3 and Pd. More importantly, the highly electroactive Pd-Bi2Te3 can accelerate charge transfer and boost the oxidation of CO-like intermediates, which are conducive to the enhancement in electrochemical stability.

Engineering Heterostructured Pd-Bi2Te3 Doughnut/Pd Hollow Nanospheres for Ethylene Glycol Electrooxidation.

Benzenoid-like CuFeO2@reduced graphene oxide: Facile synthesis and its excellent catalytic performance in selective oxidation

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bioactmat.2022.05.017

Yitao Zhao

Papers

Supports promote single-atom catalysts toward advanced electrocatalysis

High Catalytic Activity in the Phenol Hydroxylation of Magnetically Separable CuFe2O4–Reduced Graphene Oxide

Engineering Heterostructured Pd-Bi2Te3 Doughnut/Pd Hollow Nanospheres for Ethylene Glycol Electrooxidation.

Benzenoid-like CuFeO2@reduced graphene oxide: Facile synthesis and its excellent catalytic performance in selective oxidation

Anti-oxidant anti-inflammatory and antibacterial tannin-crosslinked citrate-based mussel-inspired bioadhesives facilitate scarless wound healing