The present invention relates to preparation of a three-dimensional magnetic gamma manganese dioxide/zinc iron oxide nanohybrid on graphene and its use as a catalyst for decomposing harmful organic waste. More specifically, the present invention relates to preparation of a nanohybrid (MnO2@ZnFe2O4/rGO) by attaching manganese dioxide (MnO2) nanoflakes on reduced graphene oxide (rGO) in which zinc ferrite (ZnFe2O4) nanoparticles are dispersed and its use as a catalyst for decomposing harmful organic waste.
Wastewater effluents from many industrial processes contain highly toxic refractory compounds, such as phenolic compounds, which can have detrimental effects on the environment and public health. Previous research has been carried out to degrade these pollutants by applying advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) characterized by highly efficient mineralization and non-selectivity. Among the various AOPs, Fenton and Fenton-like reactions are well-known and efficient reactions to degrade organic contaminants due to generation hydroxyl radicals (HO*), which are oxidizing radicals. On the other hand, these processes have some limitations, such as obstacles in transportation and storage of H2O2, pH limitations (2 to 4), metal leaching, and sludge production, which reduce their applicability.
Manganese-based materials have been applied in many areas because of their superior chemical and physical properties, high abundance in soil, and low toxicity to the environment compared to cobalt. As catalysts, they are used widely in AOPs due to the unique redox loop of manganese (Mn2−/Mn4+), which gives higher potential activity through a single electron transfer. Nevertheless, there has been a limitation in that separation of the manganese-based materials from a reaction solution is difficult because of their tendency to form superfine particles.
Accordingly, recently, researches have focused on development of magnetically separable MnO2-based catalysts. The magnetic MnO2-based catalysts, however, have a problem in that the performance for application as a catalyst is not excellent, such as having very low surface areas resulting in a long time for complete degradation of harmful organic waste.
Therefore, there is a need to develop a manganese-based catalyst that has a high surface area leading to excellent degradation efficiency of harmful organic wastes and is magnetically separable, and a manufacturing method thereof.
An object of the present invention is to provide a 3D T-MnO2@ZnFe2O4/rGO nanohybrid catalyst which has a high surface area and excellent waste decomposition efficiency and is magnetically separable.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a method for preparing the 3D T-MnO2@ZnFe2O4/rGO nanohybrid catalyst.
In order to achieve the above objects, the present invention provides a 3D MnO2@ZnFe2O4/rGO nanohybrid catalyst containing reduced graphene oxide (rGO); zinc ferrite (ZnFe2O4) nanoparticles dispersed in the rGO; and manganese dioxide (MnO2) nanoflakes attached three-dimensionally on the rGO.
Further, the present invention provides a catalyst for decomposing harmful organic waste containing the 3D MnO2@ZnFe2O4/rGO nanohybrid catalyst and peroxymonosulfate (PMS).
Furthermore, the present invention provides a 3D MnO2@ZnFe2O4/rGO nanohybrid catalyst preparation method including dispersing zinc ferrite (ZnFe2O4) nanoparticles in a graphene oxide (GO) solution to prepare a ZnFe2O4/GO solution; adding a manganese precursor and an acid to the ZnFe2O4/GO solution to prepare a suspension; and performing heat treatment of the suspension to obtain a nanohybrid (MnO2@ZnFe2O4/rGO) with manganese dioxide (MnO2) nanoflakes attached three-dimensionally on reduced graphene oxide (rGO) in which zinc ferrite (ZnFe2O4) nanoparticles are dispersed.
The 3D γ-MnO2@ZnFe2O4/rGO nanohybrid catalyst of the present invention reduces graphene aggregation through synergetic effects of MnO2 nanoflakes, ZnFe2O4 nanoparticles, and graphene, and can exhibit high catalytic activity in degrading harmful organic waste due to increase of the surface area of the catalyst compared to the existing δ-MnO2@ZnFe2O4, γ-MnO2@rGO, and ZnFe2O4@rGO composites.
In addition, the 3D γ-MnO2@ZnFe2O4/rGO nanohybrid catalyst of the present invention has excellent reusability owing to the easy separation by magnets.
Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail.
The present inventors prepared a 3D γ-MnO2@ZnFe2O4/rGO nanohybrid catalyst using a simple hydrothermal method and have completed the present invention by determining that it can exhibit high catalytic activity in degrading harmful wastewater compared to the existing δ-MnO2@ZnFe2O4, γ-MnO2@rGO, and ZnFe2O4@rGO composites by reducing aggregation of graphene through the synergetic effects of MnO2 nanoflakes, ZnFe2O4 nanoparticles, and graphene, and increasing activity of a radical source by increasing the surface area of the catalyst.
The present invention provides a 3D MnO2@ZnFe2O4/rGO nanohybrid catalyst containing reduced graphene oxide (rGO); zinc ferrite (ZnFe2O4) nanoparticles dispersed in the rGO; and manganese dioxide (MnO2) nanoflakes attached three-dimensionally on the rGO.
Here, the manganese dioxide (MnO2) may have the gamma (γ) form, and an average thickness of the prepared manganese dioxide (MnO2) nanoflakes may be 2 to 5 nm.
In addition, the MnO2@ZnFe2O4/rGO nanohybrid can increase the Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) specific surface area to 200 to 500 m2 g−1 by including pores with an average diameter of 2 to 15 nm, thus increasing the catalytic activity for degrading harmful organic waste.
Further, the present invention provides a catalyst for decomposing harmful organic waste, containing the 3D MnO2@ZnFe2O4/rGO nanohybrid catalyst and peroxymonosulfate (PMS).
Here, a high-efficiency catalytic effect can be exhibited through the high surface area of the 3D MnO2@ZnFe2O4/rGO nanohybrid catalyst and sulfate radicals generated by activation of PMS by MnO2 and ZnFe2O4. Particularly, in the case that 0.2 g L−1 δ-MnO2@ZnFe2O4/rGO nanohybrid and 2.0 g L−1 PMS are added, harmful organic waste can be completely degraded within a short time.
Further, the present invention provides a 3D MnO2@ZnFe2O4/rGO nanohybrid catalyst preparation method including dispersing zinc ferrite (ZnFe2O4) nanoparticles in a graphene oxide (GO) solution to prepare a ZnFe2O4/GO solution; adding a manganese precursor and an acid to the ZnFe2O4/GO solution to prepare a suspension; and performing heat treatment of the suspension to obtain a nanohybrid (MnO2@ZnFe2O4/rGO) with manganese dioxide (MnO2) nanoflakes attached three-dimensionally on reduced graphene oxide (rGO) in which zinc ferrite (ZnFe2O4) nanoparticles are dispersed.
Here, the manganese precursor may be any one selected from the group consisting of potassium permanganate (KMnO4), manganese nitrate (Mn(NO3)2), manganese hydrochloride (MnCl2), manganese sulfate (MnSO4), and manganese acetate (Mn(CH3COO)2), but is not limited thereto.
In addition, the acid may be any one selected from the group consisting of hydrochloric acid (HCl), sulfuric acid (H2SO4), and nitric acid (HNO3), but is not limited thereto.
In addition, 0.1 to 0.7 g of the manganese precursor may be included, and 0.3 to 2.0 mL of the acid may be included. Preferably, 0.45 g of the manganese precursor and 1 mL of the acid may be included.
In addition, the heat treatment of the suspension may be performed at 50 to 150° C. for 5 to 20 hours, and preferably, at 100° C. for 12 hours, but is not limited thereto.
Here, in the case of exceeding the conditions of the preparation method, the nanohybrid (MnO2@ZnFe2O4/rGO) with manganese dioxide (MnO2) nanoflakes attached three dimensionally on reduced graphene oxide (rGO) in which zinc ferrite (ZnFe2O4) nanoparticles are dispersed according to the present invention is not formed properly, so the catalytic activity is not excellent, which may cause a problem that it cannot be usefully used as a catalyst for decomposing harmful organic waste.
In addition, an average thickness of the prepared manganese dioxide (MnO2) nanoflakes may be 2 to 5 nm, and the MnO2@ZnFe2O4/rGO nanohybrid may include pores having an average diameter of 2 to 15 nm to increase the BET specific surface area to 200 to 500 m2/g, thereby increasing the catalytic activity for decomposing harmful organic waste.
According to the present invention, the nanohybrid (MnO2@ZnFe2O4/rGO) with manganese dioxide (MnO2) nanoflakes attached three-dimensionally on reduced graphene oxide (rGO) in which zinc ferrite (ZnFe2O4) nanoparticles are dispersed was prepared simply using the hydrothermal self-assembly synthesis method. This nanohybrid exhibited a high BET specific surface area which is an important property for excellent catalytic activity, through the synergistic effects of MnO2, ZnFe2O4, and graphene. Further, it exhibited a high-efficiency catalytic effect through the sulfate radicals (SO4*) generated by the activation of PMS by MnO2 and ZnFe2O4, could be recovered easily using a magnet, and could be reused more than 5 times. Therefore, since the nanohybrid catalyst according to the present invention has excellent catalytic activity and reusability, it may be usefully applied to removal of hard-to-degrade waste materials.
Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail through examples. It would be clear to a person skilled in the art that these examples are merely for illustrating the present invention specifically and that the scope of the present invention is not limited by the examples.
All materials used below were of high purity grade, purchased from Sigma-Aldrich, and used as received without further purification. Graphene oxide (GO) was generated using Tour's method (ACS Nano, 4 (2010) 4806-4814; 12 (2018) 2078).
A catalyst was prepared using the same process described above for Example 1 except that GO was not included (hereinafter, referred to as ‘δ-MnO2@ZnFe2O4’).
A catalyst was prepared using the same process described above for Example 1 except that ZnFe2O4 was not included (hereinafter, referred to as ‘γ-MnO2@rGO’).
A catalyst was prepared using the same process described above for Example 1 except that MnO2 was not included (hereinafter, referred to as ‘ZnFe2O4@rGO’).
Powder X-ray diffraction (XRD; PANalytical, X′Pert-PRO MPD) was carried out using Cu Kα radiation. The structural information of the samples was analyzed using Fourier-transform infrared (FT-IR; Bio-Rad, Excalibur Series FTS 3000) spectroscopy and Raman spectroscopy (Horiba, XploRA plus). X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS; Kratos Analytical, AXIS Nova) was used to examine the surface components of the samples. The Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) specific surface area (SBET) and pore size distribution (PSD) of the samples were investigated using an N2 adsorption-desorption apparatus (Micromeritics 3Flex Surface Characterization Analyzer). Field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM; Hitachi, S-4800) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM; Philips, CM 200) were used to determine the morphology and structure of the samples. Magnetization measurements were carried out at room temperature using a vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM; Dexing, Model 250). The metal content of the composite was analyzed by inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP-AES; PerkinElmer, Optima 8300).
In a catalytic activity measurement test, a 10 mg of catalyst was added to 50 mL of 20 ppm phenol solution, which was then stirred for 30 minutes to achieve adsorption-desorption equilibrium. Then, to start reaction tests, 0.3 mM peroxymonosulfate (PMS) was added to the reaction solution. After a certain period of time, 1.5 mL of the aqueous sample was withdrawn using a syringe and filtered into a vial. The concentration of phenol was analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC; Young Lin, Series YL9100) equipped with a YL9120 UV/Vis detector; the UV wavelength was adjusted to 275 nm. A C-18 column (Sun Fire) was used to separate the organic solution from a mobile solution at a flow rate of 1 mL min−1. The eluent was prepared by mixing water, 1 vol. % acetic acid solution, and methanol in the ratio of 50:40:10. To examine catalytic stability and reusability, the nanohybrid was used 5 times. After each experiment, it was collected using a magnet, washed with deionized water, and dried in a vacuum oven at room temperature.
1. XRD Analysis
XRD analysis was performed on ZnFe2O4 and the composites of Example 1 and Comparative Examples 1 to 3 to determine the crystalline structure of the γ-MnO2@ZnFe2O4/rGO nanohybrid (
2. SEM, TEM Analysis
The HRTEM image in
Based on the experimental results, a possible mechanism was proposed to understand growth mechanism of MnO2 nanoflakes on rGO sheets (
3. XPS Analysis
The chemical bonding state of the γ-MnO2@ZnFe2O4/rGO nanohybrid was analyzed by XPS (
4. Raman Spectrum Analysis
5. FT-IR Analysis
Evidence for the reduction of oxygen functional groups on the GO surface was obtained from the FT-IR spectra of GO and γ-MnO2@ZnFe2O4/rGO nanohybrid, as shown in
6. SBET, PSD Analysis
As shown in
1. Catalytic Activity of γ-MnO2@ZnFe2O4/rGO Nanohybrid
The catalytic performance of the γ-MnO2@ZnFe2O4/rGO nanohybrid and the other composites for phenol degradation via peroxymonosulfate (PMS) activation was analyzed (FIG. 9a). Control experiments for catalytic activity using PMS only and γ-MnO2@ZnFe2O4/rGO nanohybrid without PMS were conducted. As a result, the sample using the γ-MnO2@ZnFe2O4/rGO nanohybrid and PMS showed the highest catalytic efficiency among all the samples tested. Further, in the absence of a catalyst, PMS could not be activated and the amount of sulfate radicals (SO4′−) generated was insufficient to degrade the 20 ppm phenol solution. Furthermore, the use of the γ-MnO2@ZnFe2O4/rGO nanohybrid without the addition of PMS resulted in the adsorption of approximately 20% of phenol after 3 hours. By combining PMS with the composites, PMS was activated on the active sites of the metal oxides, and the catalytic activity of the composites was observed in the following order: γ-MnO2@ZnFe2O4/rGO >δ-MnO2@ZnFe2O4 >γ-MnO2@rGO >ZnFe2O4@rGO.
In particular, the γ-MnO2@ZnFe2O4/rGO nanohybrid showed complete degradation of 20 mg L_(20 ppm) phenol after 30 min in the presence of PMS. A comparison with the results of the other composites revealed 22, 39, and 41% phenol degradation on ZnFe2O4@rGO, γ-MnO2@rGO, and δ-MnO2@ZnFe2O4, respectively, indicating the synergetic effects on catalytic activity of combining MnO2, ZnFe2O4, and rGO into a nanohybrid. This high-efficiency catalytic effect is attributed to the high surface area of the nanohybrid compared to the other composites (Table 1) and the ability of both MnO2 and ZnFe2O4 to activate PMS through an electron transfer mechanism to produce sulfate radicals (Eqs. (1) to (4) below). As a result, the composites containing both MnO2 and ZnFe2O4 showed high catalytic efficiency compared to other composites lacking one of them (
Further analysis of the performance of the γ-MnO2@ZnFe2O4/rGO nanohybrid under different reaction conditions was carried out and the effects of catalyst loading and PMS loading were analyzed (
2. Magnetism and Reusability of γ-MnO2@ZnFe2O4/rGO Nanohybrid Catalyst
The catalyst magnetism and reusability of the γ-MnO2@ZnFe2O4/rGO nanohybrid were evaluated from successive catalytic experiments by taking advantage of the magnetic property of the nanohybrid, which exhibited paramagnetic behavior and a slim hysteresis loop with a saturation magnetization value of approximately 7 emu g−1 at 2 θ,000 Oe, magnetic coercivity (Hc) of 293.67 Oe, and remanence (MR) of 0.266 emu g−1 (
3. Catalytic Mechanism of γ-MnO2@ZnFe2O4/rGO Nanohybrids
Based on the above results, an activation mechanism of peroxymonosulfate (PMS) on the active sites of the γ-MnO2@ZnFe2O4/rGO nanohybrid for phenol degradation is as follows (Eqs. (1) to (7) and
[Equations]
Mn(IV)+HSO5−→Mn(III)+HO*+SO4*− (1)
Mn(III)+HSO5−→Mn(IV)+SO5*−+H+ (2)
Fe(II)+HSO5−→Fe(III)+SO4*−+OH− (3)
Fe(III)+HSO5−→Fe(II)+SO5*−−+H+ (4)
2SO5*−+2OH−→2SO42−+2HO*+O2 (5)
Fe(III)+Mn(III)→Fe(II)+Mn(IV) (6)
SO
4*−+HO*+C6H6OH→Several steps→CO2+H2O+SO42− (7)
The Mn(IV)/Mn(III) and Fe(II)/Fe(III) transitions involve electron transfer, which is responsible for the catalytic reaction. In the first stage, the active sites of both MnO2 and ZnFe2O4 on the nanohybrid can activate PMS to generate active radicals (Eqs. (1) to (4)), which can contribute to phenol degradation (Eq. (7)). Hydroxyl radicals (HO) are generated further after the depletion of SO4*− in a rapid reaction with phenol in the first stage (Eq. (5)), and HO* becomes the only radical that reacts with phenol in the last stage of the reaction. The return to the original oxidation states of the metals (Mn(IV) and Fe(II)) is due to the recovery reactions on the reduced hybrid (Eq. (6)).
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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10-2019-0050900 | Apr 2019 | KR | national |
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
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PCT/KR2019/012200 | 9/20/2019 | WO | 00 |