Inhibitory effects of natural organic matter on methyltriclosan photolysis kinetics

Amine-Functionalized A-Center Sphalerite for Selective and Efficient Destruction of Perfluorooctanoic Acid

Perfluorochemicals (PFCs), especially perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), have contaminated the ground and surface waters throughout the world. Efficient removal of PFCs from contaminated waters has been a major challenge. This study developed a novel UV-based reaction system to achieve fast PFOA adsorption and decomposition without addition of sacrificial chemicals by using synthetic photocatalyst sphalerite (ZnS-[N]) with sufficient surface amination and defects. The obtained ZnS-[N] has the capability of both reduction and oxidation due to the suitable band gap and photo-generated hole-trapping properties created by surface defects. The cooperated organic amine functional groups on the surface of ZnS-[N] play a crucial role in the selective adsorption of PFOA, which guarantee the efficient destruction of PFOA subsequently, and 1 μg L^-1 PFOA could be degraded to <70 ng L^-1 after 3 h in the presence of 0.75 g L^-1 ZnS-[N] under 500 W UV irradiation. In this process, the photogenerated electrons (reduction) and holes (oxidation) on the ZnS-[N] surface work in a synergistic manner to achieve complete defluorination of PFOA. This study not only provides promising green technology for PFC-pollution remediation but also highlights the significance of developing a target system capable of both reduction and oxidation for PFC degradation.

Insight into the effect of natural organic matter on the photooxidation of arsenite induced by colloidal ferric hydroxides in water

Surface complexation of arsenite (As(III)) on colloidal ferric hydroxide (CFH) plays an important role not only in the adsorptive immobilization of As(III) but also in the subsequent oxidation of As(III) to arsenate (As(V)) through light-induced ligand-to-metal charge transfer (LMCT) in water at near-neutral pH. However, the effects of natural organic matter (NOM), especially humic substances (HSs) and low molecular weight carboxylic acids (CAs), on the photochemistry of the CFH-As(III) system have not been sufficiently understood. In this work, the inhibition of photooxidation of As(III) in terms of the observed apparent rate constant (k_obs) by six HSs (below 16 mg L^-1) and seven CAs (below 2.5 mM) has been observed in water containing 66 μM Fe(III) and 5 μM As(III) at pH 7 under simulated solar irradiation consisting of UVA (λ_max 365 nm) and UVB (λ_max 313 nm) lights. Total inhibition factors (T) have been determined from the combined effect of light-screening factor (S) and competitive complexation factor (C), wherein both S and C varied with NOM concentration. S was obtained by determining the absorbance of NOM, and C was obtained by fitting modified Langmuir or Freundlich models to the amount of As(III) desorbed from CFH upon the addition of NOM. Statistical analysis between the experimental T_exp and the calculated one according to T_cal = S × C showed that the Freundlich model (RMSE for HS 0.1609 and for CA 0.1771) was better than the Langmuir model and was statistically robust (Q_LOO²= 0.691 > 0.5). This work provided an estimation method for the effects of NOM on As(III) photooxidation in the presence of CFH as well as a deeper understanding of the transformation of arsenic species in sunlit water.

Photodegradation of free estrogens driven by UV light: Effects of operation mode and water matrix

Estrogens are endocrine disrupting chemicals that have been frequently detected in diverse water matrices (e.g. surface water, wastewater and drinking water) and caused a series of health risks. This study was aimed at investigating the photochemical degradation of free estrogens estrone (E1), 17β-estradiol (E2), estriol (E3), and 17α-ethyl estradiol (EE2) upon the monochromatic irradiation (253.7 nm). Concerning the practical installation of photolysis treatment, exposing the impacts of photoreactor operation mode (stationary or up-flow) and the water matrix (ultrapure water or natural surface water) on the photolytic behaviour of estrogens was of high importance. The pseudo-first-order rate constants showed that E1 was the most susceptible to UV radiation among chosen estrogens due to its high molar absorption coefficient of 402.4 M^-1 cm^-1 and quantum yield of 0.065 mol E^-1 at λ = 253.7 nm. Moreover, the up-flow mode and the surface water matrix collected from a lake in Regent's Park (London) were found to favour the photodegradation of estrogens due to the introduction of more dissolved oxygens and promotion of reactive oxygen species (ROS) formation. These findings may shed light on the photochemical behaviour of estrogens in some specific scenarios.

Mechanisms for hydroxyl radical production and arsenic removal in sulfur-vacancy greigite (Fe3S4)

Herein, we systematically investigated the mechanisms of OH production and arsenic (As(III)) oxidation induced by sulfur vacancy greigite (Fe₃S₄) under anoxic and oxic conditions. Reactive oxygen species analyses revealed that sulfur vacancy-rich Fe₃S₄ (SV-rich Fe₃S₄) activated molecular oxygen to produce hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) via a two-electron reduction pathway under oxic conditions. Subsequently, H₂O₂ was decomposed to OH via the Fenton reaction. Additionally, H₂O was directly oxidized to OH by surface high-valent iron (Fe(IV)) resulting from the abundance of sulfur vacancies in Fe₃S₄ under anoxic/oxic conditions. These differential OH-generating mechanisms of Fe₃S₄ resulted in higher OH production of SV-rich Fe₃S₄ compared to sulfur vacancy-poor Fe₃S₄ (SV-poor Fe₃S₄). Moreover, the OH production rate of SV-rich Fe₃S₄ under oxic conditions (19.3 ± 1.0 μM•h^-1) was 1.6 times greater than under anoxic conditions (11.8 ± 0.4 μM•h^-1). As(III) removal experiments and X-ray photoelectron spectra (XPS) showed that both OH production pathways were favorable for As(III) oxidation, and a higher concentration of As(V) was immobilized on the surface of SV-rich Fe₃S₄ under oxic conditions. This study provides new insights concerning OH production and environmental pollutants removal mechanisms on surface defects of Fe₃S₄ under anoxic and oxic conditions.

Effects of different variables on photodestruction of perfluorooctanoic acid in self-assembled micelle system

Perfluoroalkyl substance (PFAS) is a class of anionic surfactants with superior stability in the environment. Due to the harmful health effect, PFASs have been listed as the priority controlled pollutants. Our recent study had developed a cationic surfactant induced ternary self-assembled micelle system to effectively degrade PFASs. In this study, using perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) as the model pollutant, we further investigated the effects of different variables on the degradation processes. According to the results of laser flash photolysis and dynamic light scattering, the degradation of PFOA was positively correlated with the chain length of the surfactants. While for double-chain surfactant, the steric effect might hinder the reaction. Our results also indicated that in the presence of high concentration of NaCl, the electrostatic attraction between Cl^- and the positively charged micelle made the micelle structure loose and thus slightly reduced the degradation efficiency. Similarly, the presence of NOM could also affect the degradation process via regulating the micelle structure. Furthermore, the optimal degradation efficiency for PFOA was obtained at neutral pH by the compromise of hydrated electron yield and self-assembled micelle structure. This composite showed good adaptability under ambient conditions and would have great potential for treatment of industrial PFAS containing wastewater, e.g., in the ternary micelle system, 18.95 mg L^-1 PFOA could be completely degraded within 8 h without any pretreatments.