Enhanced photocatalytic performance of iron oxides@HTCC fabricated from zinc extraction tailings for methylene blue degradation: Investigation of the photocatalytic mechanism

• Published in: International journal of minerals, metallurgy and materials Vol. 30; no. 12; pp. 2364 - 2374
• Main Authors: Xue, Yang, Liu, Xiaoming, Zhang, Na, Shao, Yang, Xu, Chunbao Charles
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Beijing University of Science and Technology Beijing 01.12.2023; School of Metallurgical and Ecological Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing 100083, China%Beijing Key Laboratory of Materials Utilization of Nonmetallic Minerals and Solid Wastes, National Laboratory of Mineral Materials, School of Materials Science and Technology, China University of Geosciences, Beijing 100083, China%School of Metallurgical and Ecological Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing 100083, China%Department of Chemical & Biochemical Engineering, Western University, London, ON N6A 5B9, Canada; State Key Laboratory of Advanced Metallurgy, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing 100083, China
• Subjects: Ceramics; Characterization and Evaluation of Materials; Chemistry and Materials Science; Composites; Corrosion and Coatings; Glass; Materials Science; Metallic Materials; Natural Materials; Surfaces and Interfaces; Thin Films; Tribology; photocatalysis; methylene blue degradation; photo-Fenton reaction; tailings utilization
• ISSN: 1674-4799; 1869-103X
• DOI: 10.1007/s12613-023-2723-5

Photocatalytic processes are efficient methods to solve water contamination problems, especially considering dyeing wastewater disposal. However, high-efficiency photocatalysts are usually very expensive and have the risk of heavy metal pollution. Recently, an iron oxides@hydrothermal carbonation carbon (HTCC) heterogeneous catalyst was prepared by our group through co-hydrothermal treatment of carbohydrates and zinc extraction tailings of converter dust. Herein, the catalytic performance of the iron oxides@HTCC was verified by a nonbiodegradable dye, methylene blue (MB), and the catalytic mechanism was deduced from theoretical simulations and spectroscopic measurements. The iron oxides@HTCC showed an excellent synergy between photocatalysis and Fenton-like reactions. Under visible-light illumination, the iron oxides@HTCC could be excited to generate electrons and holes, reacting with H 2 O 2 to produce ·OH radicals to oxidize and decompose organic pollutants. The removal efficiency of methylene blue over iron oxides@HTCC at 140 min was 2.86 times that of HTCC. The enhanced catalytic performance was attributed to the advantages of iron oxides modification: (1) promoting the excitation induced by photons; (2) improving the charge transfer. Furthermore, the iron oxides@HTCC showed high catalytic activity in a wide pH value range of 2.3–10.4, and the MB removal efficiency remained higher than 95% after the iron oxides@HTCC was recycled 4 times. The magnetically recyclable iron oxides@HTCC may provide a solution for the treatment of wastewater from the textile industry.