Rational design of CuO/SiO2 nanocatalyst with anchor structure and hydrophilic surface for efficient hydrogenation of nitrophenol

Facile Synthesis of CoOOH Nanorings over Reduced Graphene Oxide and Their Application in the Reduction of p-Nitrophenol

A facile and one-step route has been employed for the synthesis of highly uniform CoOOH nanorings assembled on the surface of reduced graphene oxide (CoOOH/rGO nanocomposite). The physicochemical properties of the obtained CoOOH/rGO nanocomposite were characterized using X-ray diffraction pattern (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), N₂ physical adsorption (BET) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The TEM and SEM results confirmed that CoOOH nanorings (edge length ∼ 95 nm) were uniformly decorated on reduced graphene oxide nanosheets using the simple precipitation-oxidation-reduction method. When used as a catalyst for the reduction of p-nitrophenol to p-aminophenol in the presence of excess NaBH₄, the resulting CoOOH/rGO nanocomposite exhibited good activity and stability. When the initial concentration of p-nitrophenol was 1.25 × 10^-4 mol·L^-1, p-nitrophenol could be fully reduced within 3.25 min at room temperature. The apparent rate constant was estimated to be 1.77 min^-1, which is higher than that of pure CoOOH nanorings. Moreover, p-nitrophenol could still be completely reduced within 6 min in the fifth successive cycle. The superior catalytic performance of the nanocomposite is attributed to the synergistic effect between the highly dispersed CoOOH nanorings and the unique surface properties of the reduced graphene oxide nanosheets, which greatly increased the concentration of p-nitrophenol near CoOOH nanorings on reduced graphene oxide surface and improved the local electron density at the interface.

Oxygen Vacancy-Mediated Activates Oxygen to Produce Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) on Ce-Modified Activated Clay for Degradation of Organic Compounds without Hydrogen Peroxide in Strong Acid

The treatment of acid wastewater to remove organic matter in acid wastewater and recycle valuable resources has great significance. However, the classical advanced oxidation process (AOPs), such as the Fenton reaction, encountered a bottleneck under the conditions of strong acid. Herein, making use of the oxidation properties of CeAY (CeO₂@acid clay), we built an AOPs reaction system without H₂O₂ under a strong acid condition that can realize the transformation of organic matter in industrial wastewater. The X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) proved that the CeAY based on Ce³⁺ as an active center has abundant oxygen vacancies, which can catalyze O₂ to produce reactive oxygen species (ROS). Based on the electron spin-resonance spectroscopy spectrum and radical trapping experiments, the production of •O₂^- and •OH can be determined, which are the essential factors of the degradation of organic compounds. In the system of pH = 1.0, when 1 mg CeAY is added to 10 mL of wastewater, the degradation efficiency of an aniline solution with a 5 mg/L effluent concentration is 100%, and that of a benzoic acid solution with a 100 mg/L effluent concentration is 50% after 10 min of reaction. This work may provide novel insights into the removal of organic pollutants in a strong acid water matrix.

Silica-Supported Copper (II) Oxide Cluster via Ball Milling Method for Catalytic Combustion of Ethyl Acetate

Highly dispersed CuO/SiO2 catalysts were successfully synthesized by a green process of ball milling (BM) under solvent-free and room temperature conditions. The structural evolution of CuO/SiO2 catalysts prepared by BM was elucidated by TG-DSC, XRD, FT-IR, and XPS characterizations. We found that the copper acetate precursor was dispersed over the layer of copper phyllosilicate which was formed by reacting between the copper acetate precursor and the silica support during the BM process. The copper phyllosilicate layer over the support might play an important role in the stabilization of the CuO cluster (<2 nm) during thermal pretreatment. The 15% CuO/SiO2 catalyst exhibited the best catalytic activity for the catalytic combustion of ethyl acetate as it owned a highest active surface area of CuO among the CuO/SiO2 catalysts with different copper loadings.

Activation of persulfate by mesoporous silica spheres-doping CuO for bisphenol A removal

In the present work, mesoporous silica spheres-doping CuO (CuO/MSS) was prepared via a facile hydrothermal method. It acted as a peroxydisulfate (PDS) activator for the removal of bisphenol A (BPA). X-Ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscope (TEM), scanning electron microscope (SEM), and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) showed that CuO was successfully synthesized and silica spheres were doped in CuO. Nitrogen sorption isotherm showed that CuO/MSS, which had a high specific surface area and a narrow pore size distribution, exhibited a mesoporous structure. The effect of initial pH, PDS dosage, catalyst amount, and activation temperature was assessed. A removal efficiency of over 80% was observed after five consecutive cycles, suggesting the superior stability of the catalyst. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), radical quenching experiments, and electrochemical evaluation showed that BPA removal was dominated by the electron transfer among PDS, BPA, and the surface of CuO/MSS (non-radical pathway), while SO₄^·- and OH· radicals had a minor contribution (radical pathway). In addition, the degradation pathways of BPA were proposed according to the intermediates. Overall, this study indicates that CuO/MSS is a promising effective PDS activator to address the drawbacks of the classical Fenton process.

Copper-Based Integral Catalytic Impeller for the Rapid Catalytic Reduction of 4-Nitrophenol

The integral catalytic impeller can simultaneously improve reaction efficiency and avoid the problem of catalyst separation, which has great potential in applying heterogeneous catalysis. This paper introduced a strategy of combining electroless copper plating with 3D printing technology to construct a pluggable copper-based integral catalytic agitating impeller (Cu-ICAI) and applied it to the catalytic reduction of 4-nitrophenol (4-NP). The obtained Cu-ICAI exhibits very excellent catalytic activity. The 4-NP conversion rate reaches almost 100% within 90 s. Furthermore, the Cu-ICAI can be easily pulled out from the reactor to be repeatedly used more than 15 times with high performance. Energy-dispersive spectrometry, X-ray diffraction, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy characterizations show that the catalyst obtained by electroless copper plating is a ternary Cu-Cu₂O-CuO composite catalyst, which is conducive to the electron transfer process. This low-cost, facile, and versatile strategy, combining electroless plating and 3D printing, may provide a new idea for the preparation of the integral impeller with other metal catalytic activities.