Catalytic activation of O2 by Al0-CNTs-Cu2O composite for Fenton-like degradation of sulfamerazine antibiotic at wide pH range

In this study, a novel Al°-CNTs-Cu 2 O composite, capable of activating O 2 to generate H 2 O 2 and further to reactive oxygen species (ROSs) at a wide pH range, was synthetized, characterized and applied for the degradation of sulfamerazine. In the activation of O 2 by Al°-CNTs-Cu 2 O composite, H 2 O 2 was generated from the reaction of O 2 with Al°-CNTs, which could be catalytically decomposed into O 2 − and OH by Cu 2 O, the formed Cu(II) could be rapidly reduced to Cu 2 O by Al°-CNTs in composite, which made Al°-CNTs-Cu 2 O composite reusable and decreased the leaching of copper ions into solution. The removal efficiency of SMR and TOC was 73.91 % and 56.80 %, respectively at initial pH = 5.8, T = 20 °C, O 2 flow rate = 100 mL/min, Al°-CNTs-Cu 2 O dosage = 2 g/L, SMR = 50 mg/L, and reaction time = 60 min. The removal efficiency of SMR kept almost unchanged and the concentration of copper ions in solution was below 0.5 mg/L. The Al°-CNTs-Cu 2 O/O 2 process could be used as a novel catalyst for the degradation of refractory organic contaminants in water and wastewater by Fenton-like process at a wide pH range through the in situ generation of H 2 O 2 .