The release of persistent and toxic pollutants into the environment due to inadequate wastewater treatment is a well-recognized issue. In recent years, electrochemical advanced oxidation processes (EAOPs) have emerged as potential sustainable options to degrade hazardous contaminants. Among them, the electro-Fenton process (EF) has shown particular advantageous features, since it utilizes inexpensive carbonaceous materials for the cathodic production of H2O2 that promotes the Fenton’s reaction in the presence of Fe2+ catalyst. In this work, a novel reduced graphene oxide (rGO)-coated carbon fiber (CF) cathode was prepared using a simple thermal treatment method. The electrochemical characterization pointed out that this rGO-CF cathode had a higher electroactive surface area (1387.1 cm2 g-1), lower electron-transfer resistance (0.198 Ω) and higher activity towards the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) as compared to the uncoated fibers. The cathode achieved 122.1 mg L-1 of H2O2 accumulation, which was 45% higher than the H2O2 produced with the unmodified electrode (84.2 mg L-1). The rGO-CF cathode was further used in the EF treatment of 2,4,7,9-tetramethyl-5-decyne-4,7-diol (TMDD), a massively used non-ionic surfactant. TMDD degradation rate was doubled with rGO-CF as compared to the unmodified cathode, and it increased the 2-hour mineralization yield from 49.4% to 84% (Fig. 1). Furthermore, rGO-CF exhibited reliable stability during several cycles of cyclic voltammetry and 5 consecutive runs of EF experiments, showing its potential for practical applications.

Synthesis of a graphene-coated cathode for the electro-fenton treatment of TMDD

2019 Spring National Meeting

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