Peroxymonosulfate activation by Co and Zr co-doped Fe3O4 nanoparticles for removing glyphosate and recovering phosphorus: Combination of experiments and DFT calculations

Glyphosate (GP) has given rise to concerns regarding its environmental impact and potential hazards to human health. Herein, a solvothermal approach was used for doping Co and Zr into Fe3O4, thereby endowing the adsorption and catalytic efficacy for GP elimination and phosphate recovery from aqueous solution. The magnetic nanoparticles achieved 100 % removal of 100 mg/L GP in 30 min with 0.5 mM peroxymonosulfate (PMS). Electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) test verified that both radical and non-radical pathways were produced in the catalytic oxidation process. Density functional theory (DFT) investigations have demonstrated that Co and Zr co-doping led to an improved removal efficiency of GP. Moreover, the as-prepared material used in this integrated PMS activation and adsorption maintained a high stability towards GP degradation and phosphate recovery during five successive cycles. This study provides an efficient technique for the removal of GP and the simultaneous adsorption of secondary inorganic phosphorus from water.