Insight into the high-efficient electrocatalytic elimination toward antibiotics via introducing FeTiO3 interlayer under Ce-PbO2 coating

At present, the development of high-efficient electrocatalyst is still of great urgency for efficiently eliminating the refractory antibiotics. Herein, a novel Ti/FeTiO 3 /Ce-PbO 2 laminated electrode (TFCP) is firstly constructed via introducing FeTiO 3 interlayer into the Ti/Ce-PbO 2 (TCP). After systematical investigation on the Ti/FeTiO 3 (TF), TCP and TFCP anode with scanning electron microscope (SEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) measurements, the electrocatalytic properties of these electrocatalysts have been compared by checking electrocatalytic degradation towards levofloxacin (LEVO) antibiotics coupled with systematical optimization on the electrode preparation conditions and electrocatalytic degradation process parameters. Dramatically, the optimal TFCP delivers higher removal 95% of LEVO within 120 min than those of TF (63%) and TCP (49%). Quite obviously, the introduction of FeTiO 3 interlayer is the important reason for the enhanced electrocatalytic activity of TCP, which can give rise to larger electrochemical active surface area , moderate electrochemical resistance and higher oxygen evolution potential (OEP) of TFCP than those of the TF and TCP electrodes. Also, TFCP shows predominant reusability for repeated utilization and desirable wide-applicability for other antibiotics and dyes removal . The degradation pathway has been presumably speculated by analyzing the intermediates. In conclusion, this work paves a novel avenue for the highly efficient electrocatalytic degradation towards antibiotics by introducing the interlayer into the TCP.