Opportunities for nanotechnology to enhance electrochemical treatment of pollutants in potable water and industrial wastewater – a perspective

Garcia‐Segura, Sergi; Qu, Xiaolei; Alvarez, Pedro J. J.; Chaplin, Brian P.; Chen, Wei; Crittenden, John C.; Feng, Yi; Gao, Guandao; He, Zhen; Hou, Chia‐Hung; Hu, Xiao; Jiang, Guibin; Kim, Jae Hong; Li, Jiansheng; Li, Qilin; Ma, Jie; Ma, Jinxing; Nienhauser, Alec Brockway; Niu, Junfeng; Pan, Bingcai; Quan, Xie; Ronzani, Filippo; Villagrán, Dino; Waite, T. David; Walker, W. Shane; Wang, Can; Wong, Michael S.; Westerhoff, Paul

doi:10.1039/d0en00194e

Cited by 97 publications

(74 citation statements)

References 84 publications

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“…Electrochemical technologies are emerging as a promising solution given their versatility and efficient removal of organic pollutants, oxyanions, scalants, and even pathogens from water. However, challenges related to effective and selective electrode materials still exist [ 2 ]. In this context, metal–organic-frameworks (MOFs) are defining a new scientific pathway to overcome such barriers.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Surge of Metal–Organic-Framework (MOFs)-Based Electrodes as Key Elements in Electrochemically Driven Processes for the Environment

et al. 2021

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Metal–organic-frameworks (MOFs) are emerging materials used in the environmental electrochemistry community for Faradaic and non-Faradaic water remediation technologies. It has been concluded that MOF-based materials show improvement in performance compared to traditional (non-)faradaic materials. In particular, this review outlines MOF synthesis and their application in the fields of electron- and photoelectron-Fenton degradation reactions, photoelectrocatalytic degradations, and capacitive deionization physical separations. This work overviews the main electrode materials used for the different environmental remediation processes, discusses the main performance enhancements achieved via the utilization of MOFs compared to traditional materials, and provides perspective and insights for the further development of the utilization of MOF-derived materials in electrified water treatment.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Surge of Metal–Organic-Framework (MOFs)-Based Electrodes as Key Elements in Electrochemically Driven Processes for the Environment

et al. 2021

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“…10,11,12,13,14 The key advantage of EAOP in destroying PFAS lies in its environmental compatibility, being based on electricity rather than additional chemicals that are themselves potentially toxic or require subsequent removal. 10,11,15 The underlying mechanism for the destruction of PFAS is governed by the electrochemical production of hydroxyl free radicals (  OH) as a byproduct of water oxidation at the anode surface, which then react unselectively with a myriad of recalcitrant organic contaminants in water (Equation 1): 16 H2O →  OH + H + + e …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Conductive Magnéli titanium oxide (Ti4O7; n-type) has recently been implemented for PFAS destruction and has demonstrated high stability, coupled with high efficacy for destroying organic contaminants (<10% PFAS concentration in permeate). 12,15 Several sub-oxides of Ti4O7 phases exist, based on the generic chemical formula, TinO2n-1, 4  n  10; the most conductive phases are Ti4O7 and Ti5O9. Magnéli Ti4O7 is also commercially available, which ensures a seamless transition to industrial-scale applications.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Novel Niobium-doped Titanium Oxide Towards Electrochemical Destruction of Forever Chemicals

Schlesinger

et al. 2021

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Electrochemical advanced oxidative processes (EAOP) are a promising route to destroy recalcitrant organic contaminants such as per- and poly- fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in drinking water. Central to EAOP are catalysis-induced reactive free radicals for breaking the carbon fluorine bonds in PFAS. Generating these reactive species electrochemically at electrodes provides an advantage over other oxidation processes that rely on chemicals or other harsh conditions. Herein, we report on the performance of niobium (Nb) doped rutile titanium oxide (TiO2) as a novel EAOP catalytic material, combining theoretical modeling with experimental synthesis and characterization. Calculations based on density functional theory reveal that Nb doping below 6.25 at.% is expected to reduce radical generation, and higher concentrations up to 12.5 at.% lead to increased performance, competitive with state-of-the-art Magnéli Ti4O7. Nb-doped TiO2 samples were synthesized and found to generate reactive oxygen free radical species with high oxidative stability. We conclude that Nb-doped TiO2 is a promising alternative EAOP catalytic material with increased activity towards generating reactive oxygen species, and is a viable solution for electrochemically destructing PFAS contaminants.

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“…Since the electro-Fenton process involves electrochemical reactions, its performance is limited by the mass transport of oxygen and the pollutant species to the electrode surface and therefore it nis closely related to the reactor design (Garcia-Segura et al 2020). Over the last years, the design of most of the continuous-flow electro-Fenton reactors has focused on the flow-by configuration, where the pollutant containing effluent flows parallel to the anode and cathode surfaces (Zhou et al 2017).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In spite of the interest in 3D and flow-through reactors, there is still a severe lack on the understanding of reactor configuration effects since most electrochemical publications focus on novel electrode materials rather than on recognizing the significant influences of mass transport on pollutant degradation (Garcia-Segura et al 2020). In this way, the flow direction of the solution is an important operational variable in flow-through reactors because it can control the overall performance of the process.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Study of The Performance of A Cylindrical Flow-Through Electro-Fenton Reactor Using Different Arrangements of Carbon Felt Electrodes: Degradation of Amoxicillin In Aqueous Solution

García‐Espinoza

Robles

Durán-Moreno

et al. 2021

Preprint

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In this work, a cylindrical flow-through electro-Fenton reactor integrated by graphite felt electrodes and Fe(II) loaded resin was evaluated for the production of the Fenton reaction mixture and for the degradation of amoxicillin (AMX) containing aqueous solutions. First, the influence of several factors such as treatment time, current intensity, flow rate and electrode position were investigated for the electrogeneration of H2O2 and the energetic consumption by means of a factorial design methodology using a 24 factorial matrix. Electric current and treatment time were found to be the pivotal parameters influencing the H2O2 production with respective contributions of 40.2% and 26.9%. The flow rate had low influence on the responses, however, 500 mL min-1 (with an average residence time of 1.09 min obtained in the residence time distribution analysis) allowed to obtain a better performance due to the high mass transport to and from the electrodes. As expected, polarization was also found to play an important role, since for cathode-to-anode flow direction, lower H2O2 concentrations were determined when compared with anode-to-cathode flow arrangement, indicating that part of the H2O2 produced in the cathode could be destroyed at the anode. A fluorescence study of hydroxyl radical production on the other hand, showed that higher yields were obtained using an anode-to-cathode flow direction (up to 3.88 µM), when compared with experiments carried out using a cathode-to-anode flow direction (3.11 µM). The removal of a commercial formulation of the antibiotic amoxicillin (AMX) was evaluated in terms of total organic carbon, achieving up to 57.9 % and 38.63% of the pollutant mineralization using synthetic and real sanitary wastewater spiked, respectively. Finally, the efficiency of the process on the inactivation of fecal coliforms in sanitary wastewater samples was assessed, reducing 90% of the bacterium after 5 min of electrolysis.

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Opportunities for nanotechnology to enhance electrochemical treatment of pollutants in potable water and industrial wastewater – a perspective

Abstract: An international workshop identified how pore structures and unique properties that emerge at nano- to sub-nano- size domains can improve the energy efficiency and selectivity of electroseparation or electrocatalytic processes for treating water.

Cited by 97 publications

References 84 publications

The Surge of Metal–Organic-Framework (MOFs)-Based Electrodes as Key Elements in Electrochemically Driven Processes for the Environment

The Surge of Metal–Organic-Framework (MOFs)-Based Electrodes as Key Elements in Electrochemically Driven Processes for the Environment

Novel Niobium-doped Titanium Oxide Towards Electrochemical Destruction of Forever Chemicals

Study of The Performance of A Cylindrical Flow-Through Electro-Fenton Reactor Using Different Arrangements of Carbon Felt Electrodes: Degradation of Amoxicillin In Aqueous Solution

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