Spinel CuCo2O4 Research Articles

CuO and spinel CuCo2O4 supported on mesoporous nanocubes with dual redox-active centers for electrocatalytic H2O2 reduction and sensing

The copper hexacyanoferrate (CuHCF) nanocube and its cobalt-substituted analogue (CoCuHCF) possess numerous micropores; however, they demonstrate limited electrocatalytic performance for H2O2 reduction. Heat treatment of CuHCF in air (CuHCF-ht) results in the formation of CuO and Fe3O4 with noticeable aggregation. In contrast, the heat treatment of CoCuHCF in air (CoCuHCF-ht) preserves its nanocube structure while also forming a spinel CuCo2O4 phase. The partial substitution of cobalt ions for copper ions in CuHCF enhances both thermal and structural stability, leading to the transformation of micropores into mesopores during heat treatment. This transformation improves electrolyte accessibility and structural integrity. The CoCuHCF-ht electrode features dual redox-active centers (Cu+/Cu2+ couple) derived from the CuO and CuCo2O4 phases, serving as catalytic redox mediators for H2O2 reduction. This dual redox activity results in superior performance for H2O2 reduction compared to CuHCF-ht, which only exhibits a single pair of Cu+/Cu2+ couple from CuO as an active mediator. This enhanced performance is evidenced by a lower Tafel slope, a higher catalytic rate constant, and improved mass transfer of analytes. The CoCuHCF-ht catalyst, characterized by dual redox-active centers in mesoporous nanocubes, demonstrates a high sensitivity of 234.03 μA mM−1 cm−2 and a low limit of detection (0.26 μM), along with high selectivity, stability, repeatability, and reproducibility.

Highly selective interconversion of quinoxaline and 1,2,3,4-tetrahydroquinoxaline over a spinel CuCo2O4 electrocatalyst supported by Ni foam

An efficient electrocatalytic hydrogen storage system using CuCo2O4 supported by Ni foam (CuCo2O4/NF) as a bifunctional electrocatalyst and quinoxaline as a hydrogen storage carrier was developed. Electrochemical tests were conducted at room temperature and atmospheric pressure. The results showed that the conversion and selectivity of hydrogenation reached 93 % and 99 %, respectively, within 3 h at −0.18 V (vs. RHE). Meanwhile, the conversion and selectivity of dehydrogenation both reached 100 % within 20 min at 1.30 V (vs. RHE). Moreover, due to the excellent durability of CuCo2O4/NF, the hydrogenation conversion remained as high as 89 % after 8 cycles.

Insights into performance and mechanism of CuCo2O4/MXene composite as an efficient peroxymonosulfate activator for p-nitrophenol degradation

The slow redox cycle during oxidation and the toxicity risk due to leaching of metal ions greatly hinder the practical application of transition metal-based catalysts in advanced oxidation processes. In this study, a novel layered-structured CuCo2O4/MXene composite was prepared by self-assembling CuCo2O4 spinel with two-dimensional MXene and used as a heterogeneous catalyst based on peroxymonosulfate (PMS) activation for the oxidative degradation of p-nitrophenol (4-NP). Benefiting from its unique structure, the degradation efficiency of 4-NP by CuCo2O4/MXene-activated PMS was close to 100 % within 10 min at the initial pH 7.0. Quenching experiments and electron paramagnetic resonance demonstrated that both radical (SO4•- and •OH) and non-radical (1O2) pathways were involved in the degradation of 4-NP. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis showed that the introduction of MXene could significantly promote the efficient redox cycling of Cu2+/Cu+ and Co3+/Co2+ on the catalyst surface, thus providing a continuous driving force for the PMS activation. More importantly, CuCo2O4/MXene exhibited good ionic interference resistance, high stability and low metal ion leaching rate, suggesting its potential practical application. This work not only demonstrates that CuCo2O4/MXene is a promising catalyst for the degradation of organic pollutants by PMS activation, but also provides a new idea for the development of efficient PMS-activated catalysts for pollutant degradation.

Preparing of CuCo2O4 compound by Sol-gel method and studying its structural properties

تم في هذا البحث تحضير مركب كوبالتيت النحاس CuCo2O4 بطريقة الـ Sol-Gel انطلاقا من ملح كبريتات الكوبالت ونترات النحاس. تم استخدام مركب عضوي هو البكتين كعامل تثبيت أعطى استقرارعالي لجملة الهيدروكسيدات أثناء التحضير. تم حرق العينة المحضرة عند درجات حرارة مختلفة ضمن المجال (400-1000°C) لتحديد درجة الحرارة الأفضل للحصول على البلورات المطلوبة من المركّب CuCo2O4. درست الخواص التركيبية للأكسيد المحضّر باستخدام تقنية انعراج الأشعة السينية (XRD) وجهاز التحليل الحراري التفاضلي (DTA)، ومطيافية تحت الأحمر (IR)، والمجهر الالكتروني الماسح (SEM). تم تحديد درجة حرارة الاصطناع المثلى عند الدرجة 600°C. بينت دراسة مخططات انعراج الأشعة السينية أن المركب يتبلور وفق بنية بلورية مكعبية متمركزة الوجوه FCC من نمط السباينل ومجموعة تناظر فراغية S.G هي Fd3m. حُسبت ثوابت الشبكة وحجم التبلور وعدد الصيغ للمركّب المحضّر وكانت 8.044 Å ، 520.49Å3 ، 8 على الترتيب. تبين أن حجم الحبيبات للمركّب هو 17.4nm. تطابقت الحسابات التجريبية لـ d مع قيم البطاقة المرجعية بنسبة تطابق 99.5% كحد أدنى. حسبت الكثافة النظرية والتجريبية للمركّب المحضّر وكانت النتائج متقاربة. أظهرت منحنيات التحليل الحراري التفاضلي إلى وجود خمس آثار حرارية أهمها الأثر الحراري الناشر عند الدرجة 390 والأثر الحراري الماص عند الدرجة 740°C الللذان يشيران إلى بدء تشكل المركب وبدء تفككه على الترتيب. يؤكد مخطط الطيف تحت الأحمر (IR) الحصول على المركب المطلوب من خلال القمم العائدة لاهتزازات الروابط (Co-O) و (Cu-O).

The anomalous Hall effect in the epitaxial-grown semiconducting CuCo2O4 thin film

The high-quality inverse spinel CuCo2O4 thin films are epitaxially grown on (001) MgAl2O4 substrates by radio frequency magnetron sputtering. The electrical transport properties exhibit typical semiconducting characteristics, accompanying the enhancement of resistivity with the thinning of CuCo2O4 thickness. The transport properties could be well understood by the Mott variable range hopping model. The anomalous Hall effect with a clear hysteresis loop is observed below 100 K, indicating the existence of out-of-plane magnetization in the epitaxial-grown CuCo2O4 films. In addition, the negative magnetoresistance at low temperature reverses to the positive magnetoresistance (≥100 K), which is related to the changes from the decrease in spin/carrier scattering under the magnetic field at low temperature to the enhancement of carrier deflection due to the conventional Lorenz force (≥100 K). The observed physical properties are closely related to the orbital occupation of Cu ion in CuCo2O4 films, which is a significant difference compared to that of documented metallic NiCo2O4. This work is a good comprehensive study of inverse spinel oxide thin films.

Ammonia-regulated CuCo2O4 spinel oxide embedded in Y zeolite for methanol oxidation

Morphology-controlled synthesis with a tailor-made structure is a promising approach to enhance the catalytic properties of inexpensive spinel oxides as a viable alternative to noble metals. AB2O4 spinel oxides, particularly, have garnered significant attention in mitigating volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emissions. The catalytic performance of these oxides can be improved through the modification of tetrahedrally coordinated A sites. In this study, we present a novel strategy for the preparation of CuCo2O4 spinel oxide nanoparticles embedded on Y zeolite. This involves the co-loading of Cu and Co oxides on Y zeolite, followed by successive treatment with NH3-reduction and re-oxidation. The resulting morphology-confined CuCo2O4 spinel oxides exhibit significantly higher catalytic activities and stabilities for the oxidation of CH3OH compared to their unrestrained counterparts. Our exploration into the in-situ formation of spinel oxides on Y zeolite, along with an investigation into their catalytic oxidation mechanism, lays the foundation for the rational design of non-noble metal oxide VOC catalysts.

Insight into the methanol steam reforming behavior of Cu-containing spinels CuB2O4 (B[dbnd]Co, Al, Mn, La, Cr)

Co-precipitation method was applied to prepare five Cu-containing spinels CuB2O4 with different B-sites (CuCo2O4, CuAl2O4, CuMn2O4, CuLa2O4, CuCr2O4) and the physicochemical properties of the spinels were characterized comprehensively. The Cu-containing spinels were then washcoated on Cu foams to fabricate monolithic catalysts and the catalytic performance of the catalysts under different reaction conditions was investigated in a methanol steam reforming microreactor. The effects of B-site on the structure-activity relationship and sustained release catalysis were discussed in detail. Results showed that the CuCo2O4 spinel with small particles, excellent reducibility, low acidity, large specific surface area and superior surface chemical state led to the best performance of the monolithic catalyst loaded with CuCo2O4. The B-site resulted in completely different characteristics of spinels, leading to diverse sustained release properties during the catalysis. Owing to the sustained release behavior, the catalytic stability of the Cu-containing spinel was significantly improved compared with the conventional Cu-based catalyst.

Polymerized complex and electrodeposition synthesis of Ni-doped CuCo2O4 on flexible carbon fibers as a flexible electrocatalyst for oxygen evolution reaction

In this work, Ni-doped CuCo2O4 (Cu1–xNixCo2O4, x=0, 0.20, 0.40, 0.60 and 0.80) catalysts wer synthesized by polymerized complex and electrodeposition methods on flexible carbon fiber substrates for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) in alkaline solution. The crystallinity and surface morphology of the catalysts were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM).The XRD results showed that the crystallinity corresponded to CuCo2O4 phases. The OER revealed that Cu0.40Ni0.60Co2O4 had higher activity for OER with a low overpotential of 256 mV at a current density of 10 mA cm–2, which was better than CuCo2O4 (451 mV). The results suggest that the presence of Ni2+ ions in spinel CuCo2O4 exhibited superior electrocatalytic activity towards OER with lower overpotential, and higher current density than CuCo2O4.

Diffusion kinetics of CuCo2O4 nanorods for next‐generation solid state sodium‐ion hybrid supercapacitor

AbstractIn the current study, we report a straightforward and affordable sol‐gel preparation approach for the fabrication of spinel CuCo2O4 nanorods for sodium ion‐based hybrid supercapacitor. The morphological and structural analysis shows that appropriate purity nanorods of CuCo2O4 are formed with good stoichiometry. The electrochemical study of CuCo2O4 nanorods reveals that the electrode has highest specific capacitance of 367 F g−1 at 1 A g−1 in 1 M Na2SO4 electrolyte. Evaluation of the diffusion kinetics of sodium ions through detailed electrochemical evaluations of cyclic voltammogram (CV) showing the charge storage kinetics of CuCo2O4 is primarily performed through the diffusive limited mechanisms, suggesting the battery‐like behavior of CuCo2O4 electrode. Hybrid supercapacitor (HSC) device is fabricated by utilizing CuCo2O4 for positive and reduced graphene oxide (rGO) for negative electrodes material. The polymer gel electrolyte is used in the form of hydrogel membrane made of PVA and Na2SO4, and the HSC device (rGO || CuCo2O4) exhibits energy density of 9.18 Wh kg−1. Therefore, sodium‐ion hybrid supercapacitor electrode materials for this investigation are established using a comprehensive electrochemical kinetics.

CuCo2O4 spinel supported on dealuminized metakaolinite for partial glycerol oxidation

CuCo2O4 spinel supported on dealuminized metakaolinite for partial glycerol oxidation

Facile synthesis of CuCo2O4 spinel with rGO nanocomposite via hydrothermal approach for solid state supercapacitor application

Spinel oxide nanomaterial based on pseudocapacitor electrodes is a superior remedy for the present energy problem. In this study, CuCo2O4 and reduced graphene oxide (rGO) are mixed utilizing a clean hydrothermal strategy. The characteristics of synthesized electrocatalysts were examined by employing microscopic and spectroscopic techniques. Galvanostatic charge-discharge techniques (GCD), cyclic voltammetry (CV), electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), and chronoamperometry (CA) were used to analyze the electrocatalytic behavior of all synthesized materials. The electrochemical analysis showed that the incorporation of rGO rises the discharge duration interval resultant enhances the specific capacitance (Cs) and improves the overall stable behavior of the CuCo2O4 electrocatalytic materials. At 2.0 A g−1, the electrochemical findings of spinel/rGO nanohybrid show Cs of 1372.93 F g−1, energy density (Ed) of 70.02 Wh Kg−1 and power density (Pd) of 606 W Kg−1 at 2 A g−1. The nanohybrid showed 96.35 % capacitance retention over 5000th cycles and remained stable for 40 h. However, adjustments to the electrical and structural arrangement, morphology, or doping technique improved the capacitive activity of the produced electrode.

Rod-Like Nanostructured Cu-Co Spinel with Rich Oxygen Vacancies for Efficient Electrocatalytic Dechlorination.

Dichloromethane (CH2Cl2) hydrodechlorination to methane (CH4) is a promising approach to remove the halogenated contaminants and generate clean energy. In this work, rod-like nanostructured CuCo2O4 spinels with rich oxygen vacancies are designed for highly efficient electrochemical reduction dechlorination of dichloromethane. Microscopy characterizations revealed that the special rod-like nanostructure and rich oxygen vacancies can efficiently enhance surface area, electronic/ionic transport, and expose more active sites. The experimental tests demonstrated that CuCo2O4-3 with rod-like nanostructures outperformed other morphology of CuCo2O4 spinel nanostructures in catalytic activity and product selectivity. The highest methane production of 148.84 μmol in 4 h with a Faradaic efficiency of 21.61% at -2.94 V (vs SCE) is shown. Furthermore, the density function theory proved oxygen vacancies significantly decreased the energy barrier to promote the catalyst in the reaction and Ov-Cu was the main active site in dichloromethane hydrodechlorination. This work explores a promising way to synthesize the highly efficient electrocatalysts, which may be an effective catalyst for dichloromethane hydrodechlorination to methane.

CuCo2O4/CeO2 S-scheme photocatalyst for promoted CO2 photoreduction to CH3OH

The CH3OH yield from CO2 is indispensable for generating energy demands for a sustainable and green environment. Here, an effective mesoporous CuCo2O4/CeO2 nanocomposites S-scheme heterojunction was originated for CH3OH yield from CO2 under visible illumination. TEM and XRD verified that the obtained CuCo2O4/CeO2 nanocomposite is spherical particles with 20 ± 5 nm size with the coexistence of the spinel CuCo2O4 and cubic CeO2 crystalline structure. The constructed CuCo2O4/CeO2 heterojunction photocatalysts exhibited an outstanding CH3OH yield compared with pristine CeO2 NPs. Among all nanocomposites, the CO2 conversion over 12% CuCo2O4/CeO2 heterojunction allowed a maximum CH3OH production with the dramatically promoted yield, i.e., 1320 mmolg−1 within 9 h, which was enhanced three times larger than pristine CeO2 NPs. The high CH3OH product ascribed to good primary sites, and the effective charge separation at the heterojunction photocatalyst facilitated the CO2 accommodating at the CuCo2O4/CeO2 surface and provided a larger CH3OH yield than pristine CeO2. PL and photocurrent density responses were utilized to explore the CO2 photoreduction mechanism over CuCo2O4/CeO2 nanocomposites. In addition, the recovered photocatalyst exhibited excellent photocatalytic stability without losing CH3OH yield after five consecutive runs.

Stepwise photoassisted decomposition of carbohydrates to H2

Stepwise photoassisted decomposition of carbohydrates to H2

CuCo2O4/NiCo-Metal–Organic Framework Nanoflake Arrays for High-Performance Supercapacitors

Developing hybrid metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) with ordered structure is significant to obtain promising electrode materials for supercapacitors. Herein, the special electrodes of CuCo2O4/NiCo-MOF nanoflake vertical arrays are constructed on Ni foam by using the CuCo2O4 nanorods as a self-sacrifice template. Because of the multidirectional interconnected channels of spinel CuCo2O4, great electrochemical activity of NiCo-MOF, well-arranged morphology, and synergy effect at the interface, the resulting CuCo2O4/NiCo-MOF nanoflakes exhibit remarkable specific capacity (12.81 F/cm2 or 1423 F/g at 2 mA/cm2) and excellent rate performance (remaining 79.2% at 30 mA/cm2). The asymmetric supercapacitor assembled by CuCo2O4/NiCo-MOF and an activated carbon electrode shows excellent energy density of 0.48 mWh/cm2 at a power density of 1.50 mW/cm2. This work inspires insight into exploiting hybrid MOFs with highly aligned arrays for energy storage.

Soot Combustion over Cu-Co Spinel Catalysts: The Intrinsic Effects of Precursors on Catalytic Activity.

In this work, a series of CuCo2O4-x (x = N, A and C) catalysts were synthesized using different metal salt precursors by urea hydrothermal method for catalytic soot combustion. The effect of CuCo2O4-x catalysts on soot conversion and CO2 selectivity in both loose and tight contact mode was investigated. The CuCo2O4-N catalyst exhibited outstanding catalytic activity with the characteristic temperatures (T10, T50 and T90) of 451 °C, 520 °C and 558 °C, respectively, while the CO2 selectivity reached 98.8% during the reaction. With the addition of NO, the soot combustion was further accelerated over all catalysts. Compared with the loose contact mode, the soot conversion was improved in the tight contact mode. The CuCo2O4-N catalysts showed better textural properties compared to the CuCo2O4-A and CuCo2O4-C, such as higher specific surface areas and pore volumes. The XRD results confirmed that the formation of a CuCo2O4 crystal phase in all catalysts. However, the CuO crystal phase only presented in CuCo2O4-N and CuCo2O4-A. The relative contents of Cu2+, Co3+ and Oads on the surface of CuCo2O4-x (x = N, A and C) catalysts were analyzed by XPS. The CuCo2O4-N catalyst displayed the highest relative content of Cu2+, Co3+ and Oads. The activity of catalytic soot combustion showed a good correlation with the order of the relative contents of Cu2+, Co3+ and Oads. Additionally, the CuCo2O4-N catalyst exhibited lower reduction temperature compared to the CuCo2O4-A and CuCo2O4-C. The cycle tests clarified that the copper-cobalt spinel catalyst obtained good stability. In addition, based on the Mars-van Krevelen mechanism, the process of catalytic soot combustion was described combined with the electron transfer process and the role of oxygen species over CuCo2O4 spinel catalysts.

Sensitive and selective ozone sensor based on CuCo2O4 synthesized by a facile solution combustion method

In this study, p-type spinel CuCo2O4 nanomaterials with abundant oxygen vacancies were synthesized by a facile one-step solution combustion method, and their sensing characteristics have been investigated. The p-type CuCo2O4 sensor shows a high response of 11 to 1 ppm O3 and low responses (< 2) to various interference gases (100 ppm NH3, NO2, SO2, and 500 ppm ethanol, methanol and acetone) at 90 °C in dry air, indicating a superior selectivity. The sensor also possesses a wide O3 detection range from 10 to 3000 ppb and good repeatability. More importantly, the relative humidity (RH) could promote the electrical response to O3, and the response to 1 ppm O3 only deviates from 24 to 27 as the RH increases from 50% to 90%, benefitting for practical applications in ambient humid air atmospheres. The humidity enhanced response for p-type CuCo2O4 could be ascribed to the competition of hole carrier reduction, O2− active sites reduction and O3 decomposition promotion induced by the hydroxyl groups.

Antibacterial and photocatalytic properties of copper-cobaltite (CuCo2O4) nanostructures synthesized via facile plasma-assisted electrochemical process

Leaf-like Copper-Cobaltite nanostructures (CuCo2O4 NSs) were synthesized by the facile atmospheric pressure microplasma technique. The formation of CuCo2O4 spinel was confirmed by X-ray diffraction pattern, Raman spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and Fourier transforms infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). Results confirmed the spinel phase leaf-like CuCo2O4 NSs with bandgap energy of 2.34 eV. The effect of CuCo2O4 nanostructures as an antimicrobial agent was evaluated against E. coli and S. aureus by the disc diffusion method. The results demonstrated that the tested samples exhibited significant antibacterial efficacy at higher concentrations. The performance of CuCo2O4 NSs has also been investigated against the degradation of methylene blue (MB) aqueous solution in direct solar irradiation. The electrical conductivity was calculated by the four-probe technique and was found to be 1.88 S/cm. Results showed that about 84 % degradation was recorded for MB dye in the presence of CuCo2O4 photocatalyst after 110 min of irradiation time. These favorable results initiate a step toward electrical components of nanodevices such as supercapacitors, lithium-ion batteries, biomedical applications, and environmental applications in the removal of organic pollutants from wastewater.

Removal of Celestine Blue B dye by using CuCo2O4 Nanoparticles Spinel composite

This study includes synthesis of CuCo2O4 spinel composite, it was prepared by the co-precipitation method from their aqueous nitrates as starting materials. The prepared spinel composite was characterized using X-rays diffraction (XRD), Fourier Transform Infrared Radiation spectroscopy(FTIR), UV-Visible spectroscopy, Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM), and Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FESEM). The particles size of the prepared materials was estimated applying Scherer equation and it was found to be in the range from 25-75 nm. The activity of the prepared material was investigated by removing toxic organic dyes from textile industry wastewater. From the obtained results, it was found that, the best optimal conditions for removal of dye was after 30 minutes of adsorption time, 0.005 g of the used adsorbent, 50 mg.L-1 for Celestine Blue B dye concentration, pH value 5, and at a temperature of 298K showed high removal efficiency around 97%. Also it was found that, the negative free energy ∆G and heat of reaction ∆H values, indicating that reaction process is a spontaneous and an exothermic process. In terms of entropy, the negative entropy values indicating a decrease in randomness due to the binding of dye molecules to the active sites of the adsorbent surface.

Petal-like CuCo2O4 spinel nanocatalyst with rich oxygen vacancies for efficient PMS activation to rapidly degrade pefloxacin

Herein, for the first time, we report the design and preparation of petal-like spinel structure CuCo2O4−σ with rich oxygen vacancies (Ov) derived from CuCo-zeolitic imidazolate framework (ZIF) for activating peroxymonosulfate (PMS) to quickly and efficiently degrade pefloxacin (PFX), one of important second-generation fluoroquinolone antibiotics. The petal-like CuCo2O4-σ was fabricated via carbonizing bimetal CoCu-ZIF precursor at 700 °C in air, followed by simple NaBH4 reduction strategy. Various characterization outcomes prove that the CuCo2O4-σ possesses rich Ov, hierarchical meso- and macro-porous microstructures, and stable spinel structure. The CuCo2O4-σ/PMS system exhibited approximate 95% PFX degradation during 5 min reaction, while only 4% PFX removal did in the presence of control product C-700. The PFX degradation rate constant (kapp) in the CuCo2O4-σ/PMS system was 0.572 min−1, which was about 78 times that of the C-700/PMS system (0.0073 min−1) and about 34 times that of the CuCo2O4/PMS system (0.017 min−1). Similarly, the kapp values for the Co3O4-σ/PMS and CuO1-σ/PMS systems are about 7.7 and 3.2 times those of the Co3O4/PMS and CuO/PMS systems, respectively, indicating that Ov significantly accelerates PFX degradation. In addition, the kapp value for the CuCo2O4-σ is much higher than the sum of kapp values for the Co3O4-σ and CuO1-σ, indicating important role of synergy between Cu and Co in PFX degradation. The electrochemical impedance and XPS trials demonstrate that, in addition to accelerate the electron transfer ability of CuCo2O4, the introduction of Ov also leads to the generation of low valence Co2+ ions and Cu+ ions on the surface of CuCo2O4-σ, driving the redox cycles of Co2+/Co3+ and Cu+/Cu2+ to accelerate PMS activation and realize fast PFX degradation. The CuCo2O4-σ exhibited good PMS activation capability in the 3.0 to 10.0 pH range, and good recyclability with over 92% PFX removal after the fourth-cycle run, and low leaching of Co and Cu during catalytic reaction. In addition, the CuCo2O4-σ/PMS system can rapidly degrade other organic pollutants (i.e. levofloxacin, ciprofloxacin, tetracycline hydrochloride, and rhodamine B), indicating its good universality. The active reactive species investigation reveals the generation of SO4•–, •OH, O2•− and 1O2 in the catalytic degradation of PFX. Effects of various factors, i.e. the calcination temperature for the preparation of CuCo2O4-σ, initial solution pH, catalyst dosage, PMS concentration, reaction temperature, inorganic anions, and humic acid on the degradation of PFX in the CuCo2O4-σ/PMS system were explored. Relative to other nanocatalysts for PMS activation, the CuCo2O4-σ exhibits low activation energy of 27.0 KJ/mol. Combined with LC-MS determination of PFX degradation intermediates, the possible PMS activation mechanism by the CuCo2O4-σ and possible PFX degradation pathways were proposed.