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Fenton-like degradation of Rhodamine B over Fe2O3–Al2O3-zeolite hybrids derived from coal fly ash

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Abstract

In this work, the solid waste coal fly ash was recycled for the fabrication of highly efficient Fenton-like catalyst to eliminate organic contaminants from wastewater. To reach this goal, the coal fly ash was used as the raw material to synthesize Fe2O3–Al2O3-zeolite hybrids in one pot by a facile sol–gel approach. The resulting product worked as heterogeneous Fenton-like catalyst for the highly efficient degradation of Rhodamine B in water. The characterization results of X-ray diffraction, field emission scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive spectroscopy and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy indicated that the alkalinity of synthetic medium and the increase in Na and Si sources could affect the type of newly formed zeolite. Fenton-like experiments revealed that Fe2O3–Al2O3-zeolite hybrids exhibited excellent Fenton-like catalytic activity for Rhodamine B degradation, with the degradation efficiency of 100% within 80 min reaction time. After 4th cycle, it remained high catalytic activity and stable structure. Radical scavenging tests confirmed that hydroxyl radicals were the dominant reactive oxygen species responsible for Rhodamine B degradation. Eventually, the possible mechanism on Fenton-like reactions over Fe2O3–Al2O3-zeolite hybrids was proposed and discussed.

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Acknowledgements

This work was financially supported by Natural Science Foundation of Heilongjiang Province, China (Grant No. LH2022E083).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Heilongjiang Provincial Key Laboratory of CO2 Resource Utilization and Energy Catalytic Materials, School of Materials Science and Chemical Engineering, Harbin University of Science and Technology, Harbin, 150040, People’s Republic of China

    H. Y. Xu, X. Q. Yuan, L. Y. Dai, W. S. Wang, Y. Li & L. M. Dong

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  1. H. Y. Xu
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  2. X. Q. Yuan
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  3. L. Y. Dai
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  4. W. S. Wang
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Correspondence to H. Y. Xu.

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Xu, H.Y., Yuan, X.Q., Dai, L.Y. et al. Fenton-like degradation of Rhodamine B over Fe2O3–Al2O3-zeolite hybrids derived from coal fly ash. Int. J. Environ. Sci. Technol. 20, 13233–13244 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13762-023-04884-y

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