Synthesis of magnetic Cu/CuFe2O4 nanocomposite as a highly efficient Fenton-like catalyst for methylene blue degradation

A magnetic Cu/CuFe2O4 nanocomposite was synthesized by a facile one-pot solvothermal method and characterized as an excellent Fenton-like catalyst for methylene blue (MB) degradation. The content of zero-valent copper (Cu-0) in Cu/CuFe2O4 composite could be simply controlled by changing the dosage of sodium acetate in the synthetic process, and the Fenton-like catalytic performance of Cu/CuFe2O4 composite enhanced with increasing the Cu-0 content. In the presence of H2O2 (15 mM), the as-synthesized 3-Cu/CuFe2O4 nanocomposite could remove 99% of MB (50 mg/L) after only 4 min at pH 2.50, greatly higher than that of pure CuFe2O4 and Cu-0 under the same condition. The enhancement activity of Cu/CuFe2O4 nanocomposite was due to the synergistic effect between Cu-0 and CuFe2O4. The radical capture experiments and coumarin fluorescent probe technique confirmed that MB was degraded mainly by the attack of OH center dot radicals in Cu/CuFe2O4-H2O2 system.