FeNiCeOx ternary catalyst prepared by ultrasonic impregnation method for diclofenac removal in Fenton-like system

FeNiCeOx was firstly prepared by ultrasonic impregnation method and used to remove diclofenac in a Fenton-like system. The catalytic activity was improved successfully by doping Ni into FeCeOx. The diclofenac removal efficiency reached 97.9% after 30 min reaction. The surface morphology and properties of FeNiCeOx were characterized by Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), Raman and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analyses. FeNiCeOx in this paper had larger specific surface area than those prepared by other methods, which was attributed to the cavitation effect and hot-spot effect during the ultrasonic synthesis process. Low crystallinity of Fe2O3 and NiO showed by characterization could lead to high interaction of Fe and Ni ions with support of CeO2. They substituted Ce in CeO2, caused lattice contraction and formed more oxygen vacancies, which favoured the catalytic reaction. Meanwhile, Fe and Ce ions both had redox cycles of Fe3+/Fe2+ and Ce4+/Ce3+, which facilitated the electron transfer in the reaction. The synergistic effect among Fe, Ni and Ce might lead to better catalytic performance of FeNiCeOx than any binary metal oxides constituted from the above three elements. Finally, the potential mechanism of diclofenac removal in FeNiCeOx-H2O2 system is proposed.