An innovative electro-fenton degradation system self-powered by triboelectric nanogenerator using biomass-derived carbon materials as cathode catalyst

Based on the advantages of electro-Fenton (EF) and our works on the flexible design of triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) and biomass carbon materials, a self-powered EF system is demonstrated. It is driven by a robust and flexible multilayered TENG (RFM-TENG) using carbon materials derived from magnolia flowers as the cathode for oxygen reduction. The synthetic mesoporous carbon materials have a large surface area (1226 m(2) g(-1)), favoring dissolved oxygen mass transfer and promoting the oxygen reduction process. With the sponge as the buffer layer and pre-charge injection, the short-circuit current, transferred charge and open-circuit voltage of RFM-TENG are 960 mu A, 2.8 mu C and 1050 V, respectively, and the maximum power density reaches 5.5 W m(-2) at a load resistance of 1 MO. Driven by this RFM-TENG, the persistent organic pollutant, basic orange 2, can be degraded to CO2 by hydroxyl radical (center dot OH) generated during EF process. Such mechanism is proposed based on the cyclic voltammogram, gas chromatograph-mass spectrometer, UV-vis spectra and the H2O2 measurement. With compelling features of the efficient EF method, versatile TENG and biomass-derived carbon materials, this work pioneers the alliance of TENG, carbon-based electrodes and EF to self-power the organic pollutants degradation for sustainable environmental protection.