Photo-Fenton like Catalyst System: Activated Carbon/CoFe2O4 Nanocomposite for Reactive Dye Removal from Textile Wastewater

The removal of dye from textile industry wastewater using a photo-Fenton like catalyst system was investigated wherein the removal efficiency of phenol and chemical oxygen demand (COD) was studied by varying various parameters of pH (3-11), reaction time (1-50 min), activated Carbon/CoFe2O4(AC/CFO) nanocomposite dosage (0.1-0.9 g/L), and persulfate amount (1-9 mM/L). The highest removal rates of reactive red 198 and COD were found to be 100% and 98%, respectively, for real wastewater under the optimal conditions of pH = 6.5, AC/CFO nanocomposite dosage (0.3 g/L), reaction time, 25 min, and persulfate dose of 5 mM/L up on constant UV light irradiation (30 W) at ambient room temperature. The result showed that this system is a viable and highly efficient remediation protocol relative to other advanced oxidation processes; inexpensive nature, the ease of operation, use of earth-abundant materials, and reusability for removal of organic pollutants being the salient attributes.