Abstract
The usage of pesticides has become a common practice in modern agricultural systems to meet the growing demand for food production. However, the uncontrolled use of such chemicals results in the deterioration of natural ecosystems and living beings. Thus, herein, a hybrid treatment system performing the combined functions of electro- and photo Fenton was designed to treat aqueous pesticide solution. The anode was comprised of metal oxide-based electrode (MOx), whereas the cathode was comprised of N-doped carbon electrode (N-C). Both the electrodes consist of light-responsive photocatalysts, which facilitates the removal of pollutants by generating reactive radical species such as OH• and O2 •-. The application of external anodic bias helps to improve the photocatalytic activity by preventing the recombination of electron-hole pairs. In addition, N-C on the cathode helps to catalyze the reduction of O2 to H2O2, which further reacts with Fe2+ in the system to initiate the Fenton reaction. The hybrid reactor was further optimized to study the underlying mechanisms by varying the experimental conditions such as pH, current density, electrolyte concentration, and external H2O2 concentration.Moreover, scavenging tests were performed using methanol and tertbutyl alcohol to identify the predominant radical species responsible for removing pollutants from the aqueous solution. Also, the reusability test showed that the prepared electrodes were stable for more than three successive cycles, thus offering sustainability. In general, the present study demonstrates the potential of hybrid treatment units for environmental applications and acts as a stepping stone for future endeavors in material synthesis and sustainable treatment solutions.
Published Version
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