Preparation of an ultra-long-life porous bilayer Ti/Sb-SnO2 electrode modified by nano-TiC for degradation of phenol

Abstract

Electrochemical advanced oxidation technology produces hydroxyl radicals and has no secondary pollution, making it one of the most promising technologies for treating organic pollutants in industrial wastewater. Nevertheless, low energy efficiency and short lifetime are the key issues hindering the widespread application of electrodes. In this study, TiC nanoparticles were uniformly dispersed in the deposition solution, and the Ti/Sb-SnO2 electrode was prepared by sol electrodeposition, after calcination, a porous double-layer structure was formed, which improved the catalytic performance and effectively delayed the penetration of industrial wastewater into the electrode. Compared with the Ti/Sb-SnO2 electrode, the electrode life is increased by nearly 6 times, the phenol removal rate reaches 90.64 % (2000 mA/cm2, 1 mol/L H2SO4), the oxygen evolution potential of 2.13 V, a current density of 0.096 A/cm2, a charge transfer resistance of 2.245 Ω. The results show that the porous structure is conducive to providing a larger specific surface area and contact area for the reaction, maximizing the utilization of catalytic active sites, shortens the mass transfer distance between the hydroxyl radicals and pollutants, increases the degradation rate, reduces the corrosion rate of the electrode materials, and improves electrode stability. The unique double-layer structure is obviously different from traditional electrodes, adding a layer of protective barrier, which provides a new idea for prolonging the life of electrodes. The electrode prepared in this study has a simple process, a greatly improved lifespan and an excellent energy utilization rate, which is suitable for industrial application.