Characteristics and kinetics of nitrobenzene reduction by sucrose-modified nanoiron

Sucrose-modified nanoscale zero-valent iron(SM-NZVI) was prepared with liquid phase reducing method, and characterized by transmission electron microscopy(TEM) and X-ray diffraction(XRD) for the shape and structure. The size of SM-NZVI particles was about 100–150 nm and they displayed better dispersity. The degradation of nitrobenzene(NB) in water by SM-NZVI was carried out in batch experiments. The results indicate that the efficiency of NB reduction via SM-NZVI increased by 44.24% compared with that via NZVI, and coexistent Ca2+, Mg2+, HCO3− and other ions showed little effect on NB reduction but negative influence on aniline(AN) production. Furthermore, the kinetic researches indicate that NB reduction with SM-NZVI could be described by pseudo first-order kinetic model at different initial pH values and iron dosage. The oxidation products of iron were mainly Fe3O4 and Fe2O3 with irregular shape.