Preparation and electrochemical properties of SnO2-Sb-Ni-Ce oxide anode for phenol oxidation

A novel Ni-Ce co-doped SnO2-Sb anode with macroporous titanium sheet as substrate (mp-Ti/SnO2-Sb-Ni-Ce anode) was prepared by modified sol-gel method. The surface morphology, the crystal structure, and the valence of the dopants were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), respectively. In addition, cyclic voltammetry (CV), linear sweep voltammetry (LSV), electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), and accelerated life test were also carried out to study the electrochemical properties and stability of the anodes. The results indicated that mp-Ti/SnO2-Sb-Ni-Ce anode possessed a compact and uniform surface and a longer service life than other modified SnO2 anodes. Electrocatalytic oxidation of phenol was studied in a constant current density of 10 mA cm(-2) at 25 A degrees C to evaluate the application potential of the electrode. Effects of current density and initial pH value on phenol degradation were studied. The co-doping of Ni-Ce significantly enhanced the degradation of phenol and the total organic carbon (TOC) removal on the anode, which might be attributed to the improved generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in the solution and the indirect oxidation.