Fe/Co bimetallic nanoparticles embedded in MOF-derived nitrogen-doped porous carbon rods as efficient heterogeneous electro-Fenton catalysts for degradation of organic pollutants

Abstract Developing efficient heterogeneous electro-Fenton (hetero-EF) catalysts for degradation of organic pollutants has triggered great interests. In this work, a novel hetero-EF catalyst, Fe/Co bimetallic nanoparticles embedded in MOF-derived nitrogen-doped porous carbon rods (Fe2Co1/NPC), was successfully synthesized in a facile manner for effective degradation of multiple organic pollutants including tetracycline (TC), chloramphenicol, ciprofloxacin, diclofenac sodium and sulfamethoxazole. Particularly, the Fe2Co1/NPC hetero-EF system achieved TC removal ratio of 91% within 60 min and mineralization efficiency of 90.3% within 240 min under neutral conditions, and exhibited good stability and reusability in consecutive cycling tests with low leaching of iron and cobalt. The mechanism exploration indicated that TC was primarily oxidized by •OH and •O2– radicals, and the synergistic effects of nitrogen-doped porous carbon support and optimized Fe/Co bimetallic species endowed Fe2Co1/NPC with high catalytic performance in a wide pH range. The possible pathways for the mineralization of TC were also deduced. Furthermore, the Fe2Co1/NPC hetero-EF system achieved satisfactory performance in the treatment of real water matrix including tap water, river water and urban wastewater, suggesting its good application prospect.