Iron-tannic modified cotton derived Fe0/graphitized carbon with enhanced catalytic activity for bisphenol A degradation

Abstract

The rational design of active and sustainable heterogeneous catalysts towards advanced oxidation process (AOPs) is of great significance for water remediation. Here, we synthesized Fe0/graphitized carbon composite catalysts for efficient removal of bisphenol A (BPA) by activating peroxymonosulfate (PMS). The Fe0/graphitized carbon composites were obtained by the pyrolysis of iron-tannic modified cotton, where tannic acid (TA) is an eco-friendly and low-cost polyphenol that can strongly form complexes with iron ions. The introduction of iron could significantly regulate the graphitization of carbon by changing the pyrolysis temperature. The combination of Fe0 and graphitized carbon can endow Fe-TCs with an enhanced adsorption ability due to strong complexation between Fe0 and BPA. The pyrolysis of iron-tannic modified cotton may serve as a novel strategy to design an efficient low-toxic metal-carbon catalyst for sulfate radical based processes in water remediation.