The selective two-electron oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) for an onsite Fenton oxidation reaction (electro-Fenton) over an integrated cathode is a promising method for environmental restoration. Here, novel iron–copper–carbon (FeCuC) aerogel was fabricated through a one-step process from metal-resin precursors and then activated with CO2 and N2 in environmentally friendly way. The CO2 activation enhanced the accessibility of the aerogel's pores, and the secondary N2 activation enlarged the porosity and regenerated the ultradispersed zero-valent iron (Fe0) with reductive carbon. Cu0 acted as a reduction promoter for interfacial electron transfer. Moreover, the FeCuC exhibited high ORR activity and two-electron selectivity. Indeed, Fe@Fe3C promoted the ORR activity, while Cu enhanced the selectivity of the two-electron ORR. Meanwhile, the simultaneous incorporation of Fe and Cu simultaneously facilitated the sequential Fenton oxidation induced by H2O2. The application of FeCuC as a cathode in the electro-Fenton (EF) process, involving both high ORR and high Fenton oxidation activities, exhibited efficient total organic carbon (TOC) removal for most of organic pollutants, such as dimethyl phthalate (DMP), imidacloprid (IMI), bisphenol A (BPA) and perfluorooctanoate (PFOA). Moreover, five types of sanitary sewage were successively treated to meet the national discharge standards (chemical oxygen demand (COD)&lt;50 mg L-1) with relatively low specific energy consumption (20-40 kW.h.(kgCOD)-1).

Efficient electro-Fenton oxidation process with functional “metal-carbon” aerogel

256th National Meeting (2018)

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