Hydroxylamine (HA)
can react with hydrogen peroxide (H
2
O
2
) to generate
hydroxyl radical (HO
•
), but the reaction rate between
them is very slow (2.2 × 10
–4
M
–1
s
–1
). We
propose a new system to accelerate the formation of aminoxyl radical
(NH
2
O
•
) by the addition of cerium [Ce(IV)]
to induce the continuous production of HO
•
through
reaction with H
2
O
2
. We also investigate the
decolorization and mineralization of rhodamine B (RhB) and mechanism
in the Ce(IV)/H
2
O
2
/HA system. The initial pH
plays a significant role in decolorization of RhB. In this work, observation
of the rapid decolorization process after 60 min revealed that approximately
80% of RhB was degraded at the initial pH of 4.0. The HO
•
radicals were considered as the primary reactive oxidant in the
system, during its investigation through coumarin capturing, benzoic
acid capturing, and radical quenching experiments. The results of
the present study suggest that the addition of Ce(IV) can greatly
enhance the production of HO
•
, and the rapid decolorization
and mineralization of RhB can occur through the Ce(IV)/H
2
O
2
/HA system at acidic pH conditions.