Continuous treatment of contaminants through activation of peroxymonosulfate utilizing ferrate-modified graphite felt: Radical and non-radical

The efficiency of heterogeneous catalysts in activating peroxymonosulfate for the degradation of organic pollutants depends largely on the catalyst immobilization method and the stability of the active components. In this work, a facile method of Fe immobilization using potassium ferrate modified graphite felt was developed and active Fe3O4 nanoparticles were successfully fixed on graphite felt (GF), named Fe(VI)-GF. The Fe(VI)-GF/PMS system removed 99.48 % of NPX, exhibiting excellent performance and stability. Electron Paramagnetic Resonance showed that Fe(VI)-GF-activated PMS generated both radical (SO4 center dot-, center dot OH) and non-radical (1O2) to codegrade the pollutants, and the analysis results of the NPX degradation intermediates by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and toxicity assessment confirmed the environmental friendliness of the system. The degradation efficiency of NPX by the Fe(VI)-GF fixed-bed reactor was further evaluated, and the average removal of NPX reached 92.01 % after treating 48 L of NPX for 120 h, demonstrating the applicability of the Fe(VI)-GF system in sustainable water treatment.