Nanostructured copper-organic frameworks for the generation of sulphate radicals: application in wastewater disinfection

In recent years, the presence of pathogens in the environment has become an issue of widespread concern in society. Thus, new research lines have been developed regarding the removal of pathogens and persistent pollutants in water. In this research, the efficacy of nanostructure copper-organic framework, HKUST-1, has been evaluated for its ability to eliminate Escherichia coli and generate sulphate radicals as catalyst for the treatment of effluents with a high microbiological load via peroxymonosulphate (PMS) activation. The disinfection process has been optimized, achieving complete elimination of Escherichia coli growth after 30 min of testing using a concentration of 60.5 mg/L HKUST-1 and 0.1 mM of PMS. To overcome the operational limitations of this system and facilitate its handling and reutilization in a flow disinfection process, HKUST-1 has been efficiently encapsulated on polyacrylonitrile as a novel development that could be scaled up to achieve continuous treatment.

Automated summary

In recent years, the issue of pathogens in the environment has gained widespread concern. New research has been conducted on removing pathogens and persistent pollutants from water. The study evaluated the effectiveness of the nanostructure copper-organic framework, HKUST-1, as a catalyst for eliminating Escherichia coli and generating sulphate radicals through peroxymonosulphate (PMS) activation. The disinfection process was optimized and achieved complete elimination of Escherichia coli growth after 30 minutes using a concentration of 60.5 mg/L HKUST-1 and 0.1 mM PMS. A novel development involving encapsulating HKUST-1 on polyacrylonitrile was proposed to overcome operational limitations and enable continuous treatment in a flow disinfection process.