Research progress on nano-Fe0/PS system for degradation of refractory organics in aqueous solution

Abstract

Abstract The degradation of refractory organics to harmless substances is one of the major concerns of some researchers. An emerging advanced oxidation process (AOP) is effective in generating sulfate radicals (SRs) capable of degrading organics. SRs have higher oxidation potentials and longer half-lives than hydroxyl radicals (HRs) appearing in traditional AOP. However, SRs can only be produced on-site by activating the oxidant. Persulfate (PS) is a strong oxidant which can be activated by nano-Fe0 to generate SRs due to high reactivity of nano-Fe0. At present, some researchers have used the nano-Fe0/PS process to treat refractory organics, and achieved more research results. This review in detail describes the characteristics of nano-Fe0 and PS, elaborates the mechanisms of activating PS by nano-Fe0 and nano-Fe0composites, discusses the reaction conditions in activating PS for refractory organics removal, and proposes some recommendations for future studies of nano-Fe0/PS system.