Application of nickel foam-supported Co3O4-Bi2O3 as a heterogeneous catalyst for BPA removal by peroxymonosulfate activation

Nickel foam (NF)-functionalized Co 3 O 4 -Bi 2 O 3 nanoparticles (CBO@NF) synthesized using a facile one-step microwave-assistant method were employed as catalysts to activate peroxymonosulfate (PMS) with bisphenol A (BPA) as the target pollutant. The crystallinity , morphology, and chemical valence state of the synthesized CBO@NF were analyzed using XRD, SEM , and XPS, respectively. Moreover, effects of the preparation parameters, including the calcination temperature and calcination time as well as the loading dosage, were evaluated in detail. A degradation efficiency of 95.6% was achieved within 30 min with the optimal degradation system. The CBO@NF/PMS system shows great catalytic activity in a pH range from 3.0 to 11.0. The stability and reusability of the CBO@NF supported catalyst was evaluated through a recycling experiment. In addition, the possible degradation mechanism was also explored using a quenching experiment and electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) detection. The result shows that both the surface-bound SO 4 − and OH play significant roles during the degradation process, where the electron transfer of Co 2+ /Co 3+ , Bi 3+ /Bi 5+ , and Ni 2+ /Ni 3+ realizes the sustained regeneration of the active radicals. This work provides new insight for the practical applications of sulfate radical-based advanced oxidation processes (SR-AOPs) in wastewater treatment .