Photocatalytic degradation of 2,4-DNT in simulated wastewater by magnetic CoFe2O4/SiO2/TiO2 nanoparticles

Discharge of 2,4-dinitrotoluene (2,4-DNT) into the environment leads to a serious soil and water sources pollution problem, due to toxicity and possible carcinogenicity of this toxic substance. In this work, the photocatalytic degradation of 2,4-DNT was investigated using CoFe2O4/SiO2/TiO2 nanoparticles. The catalyst features were characterized by using XRD, TEM, EDX, UV-vis DRS, FTIR, and VSM techniques. The influence of different experimental factors on degradation efficiency including pH value, catalyst dosages, and initiate concentration of 2,4-DNT were investigated. Mineralization of the model pollutant was determined using TOC analysis under optimum conditions. A possible mechanism, process kinetic and reusability of magnetic photocatalyst were also performed. In optimum experimental conditions (pH=3, photocatalyst dosage=0.75 g/L, 2,4-DNT=0.025 g/L), degradation efficiency achieved 88.5% within 180-min reaction time with TOC removal of 55.6%. Dominate oxidizing radicals during the degradation of 2,4-DNT by CoFe2O4/SiO2/TiO2 were hydroxyl radicals. The photocatalytic degradation of 2,4-DNT followed first-order rate kinetics. After three successive use cycles, the degradation efficiency was reduced by 64%. Our results revealed that the synthesized CoFe2O4/SiO2/TiO2 photocatalyst was a good choice for degradation of 2,4-DNT, due to proper potential reusability and catalytic activity.

Automated summary

In this study, the photocatalytic degradation of toxic substance 2,4-DNT using CoFe2O4/SiO2/TiO2 nanoparticles was successfully performed with an efficiency of 88.5% and proper catalytic activity. Hydroxyl radicals were identified as the dominant oxidizing radicals during the degradation process. The synthesized CoFe2O4/SiO2/TiO2 photocatalyst showed potential reusability and effectiveness in the degradation of 2,4-DNT.