Approaches to Catalysis: Elimination of Environmental Pollutants

A special issue of Catalysts (ISSN 2073-4344). This special issue belongs to the section "Environmental Catalysis".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 January 2023) | Viewed by 4955

Special Issue Editors

College of Resources and Environment, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei, China
Interests: biodegradation of pesticides; control of water pollution; distribution and transformation of antibiotics resistance gene
College of Chemistry and Biological Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing, China
Interests: degradation of environmental pollutants; environmental pesticides; environmental chemistry and Health
Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Pollutant Sensitive Materials and Environmental Remediation, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Huaibei Normal University, Huaibei, China
Interests: design and synthesis of new low dimensional materials and their application in the field of environment and energy

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Due to global economic development, human activities have generated excessive toxic organic and inorganic pollutants that have been released into the environment, causing several environmental public health issues. Industrial processes and agricultural production can produce pollutants that enter the soil, water, air, and agricultural products. These pollutants can accumulate in the environment and food, posing potential threats to food security and ecological and human health. Thus, there are increasing public concerns about the elimination and control of environmental pollutants.

The elimination of environmental pollutants mainly includes chemical catalytic degradation, catalytic degradation with new materials, and biodegradation in the environment. The degradation and removal of environmental pollutants are dependent on catalytic efficiency and method practicability. The elimination of pollutants is closely associated with pollutant varieties and the application of bioremediation methods. Topics of interest for this Special Issue include the biogeochemical processes of pollutant degradation, catalytic degradation of pollutants using new functional materials, photocatalytic degradation, advanced oxidation technology, pollutant removal by plants or microorganisms, and new methods or technologies for the removal of environmental pollutants. We wish to include target pollutants such as heavy metals, pesticides, antibiotics, environmental hormones, antibiotic resistance genes, and microplastics.

Submit your paper and select the Journal “Catalysts” and the Special Issue “Approaches to Catalysis: Elimination of Environmental Pollutants” via: MDPI submission system. Please contact the Guest Editor or the journal editor ([email protected]) for any queries. Our papers will be published on a rolling basis and we will be pleased to receive your submission once you have finished it.

Prof. Dr. Xiangwei Wu
Prof. Dr. Xiaolu Liu
Prof. Dr. Yongxing Zhang
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

  • pollution removal
  • emerging pollutants
  • endocrine disruptor compounds
  • heavy metal
  • environmental engineering materials
  • degradation
  • photocatalysis
  • remediation
  • oxidation–reduction
  • biogeochemical processes

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 575 KiB  
Article
Analysis of Unregulated VOCs Downstream a Three-Way Catalyst in a Simulated Gasoline Engine Exhaust under Non-Optimum Conditions
by Essyllt Louarn, Antoinette Boreave, Guy Raffin, Christian George and Philippe Vernoux
Catalysts 2023, 13(3), 563; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/catal13030563 - 10 Mar 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1369
Abstract
Urban air pollution is partly due to exhaust emissions from road transport. Vehicle emissions have been regulated for more than 30 years in many countries around the world. Each motor type is equipped with a specific emission control system. In gasoline vehicles, a [...] Read more.
Urban air pollution is partly due to exhaust emissions from road transport. Vehicle emissions have been regulated for more than 30 years in many countries around the world. Each motor type is equipped with a specific emission control system. In gasoline vehicles, a three-way catalytic converter (TWC) is implemented to remove at the same time hydrocarbons (HC), carbon monoxide (CO), and nitrogen oxides (NOx). However, TWCs are only efficient above 200 °C and at a stoichiometric air-to-fuel ratio in the exhaust. However, deviations from stoichiometry occur during fast accelerations and decelerations. This study reports the analysis of unregulated VOCs commercial mini-TWC fed by model gasoline gas mixtures. A synthetic gas bench was used to control the model exhaust containing two model hydrocarbons (propene and propane) to identify the conditions at which VOCs are created under non-optimal conditions. Most of the pollutants such as N2O and VOCs were emitted between 220 and 500 °C with a peak at around 280 °C, temperature which corresponds to the tipping point of the TWC activity. The combination of different mass spectrometric analysis (online and offline) allowed to identify many different VOCs: carbonated (acetone, acetaldehyde, acroleine), nitrile (acetonitrile, propanenitrile, acrylonitrile, cyanopropene) and aromatic (benzene, toluene) compounds. Growth mechanisms from propene and to a lesser extend propane are responsible for the formation of these higher aromatic compounds that could lead to the formation of secondary organic aerosol in a near-field area. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Approaches to Catalysis: Elimination of Environmental Pollutants)
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12 pages, 3018 KiB  
Article
Electro-Chemical Degradation of Norfloxacin Using a PbO2-NF Anode Prepared by the Electrodeposition of PbO2 onto the Substrate of Nickel Foam
by Jianshe Tang, Zhubin Cheng, Hao Li and Li Xiang
Catalysts 2022, 12(11), 1297; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/catal12111297 - 23 Oct 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1381
Abstract
A novel three-dimensional network nickel foam/PbO2 combination electrode (PbO2-NF) with high electrochemical degradation efficiency to norfloxacin was successfully fabricated through the electrodeposition of PbO2 on the substrate of nickel foam. The characterization of an PbO2-NF electrode, including [...] Read more.
A novel three-dimensional network nickel foam/PbO2 combination electrode (PbO2-NF) with high electrochemical degradation efficiency to norfloxacin was successfully fabricated through the electrodeposition of PbO2 on the substrate of nickel foam. The characterization of an PbO2-NF electrode, including surface morphology, elemental components, electrochemical performance, and stability was performed. In electrochemical oxidation tests, the removal efficiency of norfloxacin (initial concentration for 50 mg/L) on PbO2-NF reached 88.64% within 60 min of electrolysis, whereas that of pure nickel foam was only 30%. In the presence of PbO2-NF, the optimum current density, solution pH, electrode spacing for norfloxacin degradation were 30 mA/cm2, 11, and 3 cm, respectively. The electric energy consumption for 80% norfloxacin was approximately 5 Wh/L. Therefore, these results provide a new anode to improve the removal of norfloxacin in the wastewater with high efficiency and low energy consumption. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Approaches to Catalysis: Elimination of Environmental Pollutants)
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17 pages, 5149 KiB  
Article
Efficient Degradation of Printing and Dyeing Wastewater by Lotus Leaf-Based Nitrogen Self-Doped Mesoporous Biochar Activated Persulfate: Synergistic Mechanism of Adsorption and Catalysis
by Jiaxu Huo, Xiaohui Pang, Xueyu Wei, Xiang Sun, Hongwei Liu, Peifa Sheng, Meiqing Zhu and Xiaofan Yang
Catalysts 2022, 12(9), 1004; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/catal12091004 - 06 Sep 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1649
Abstract
The discharge of printing and dyeing wastewater has been increasing, causing serious environmental pollution with the rapid development of the industry. Based on this, an N self-doped mesoporous lotus leaf biochar (LLC800) was prepared from lotus leaves as raw material for the activation [...] Read more.
The discharge of printing and dyeing wastewater has been increasing, causing serious environmental pollution with the rapid development of the industry. Based on this, an N self-doped mesoporous lotus leaf biochar (LLC800) was prepared from lotus leaves as raw material for the activation of Persulfate (PS) to degrade wastewater from printing and dyeing. The removal rate of AO7 by PS, LLC800 and LLC800/PS systems were 0.84%, 31.11% and 99.46%, respectively. Electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy (EPR) and quench tests showed the presence of free radicals (•OH, SO4●− and O2●−) and nonradical (1O2) in the LLC800/PS system, where nonradicals (1O2) play an important role in the degradation of AO7. The “N self-doped” effect formed by the high N content of lotus leaves is the main factor leading to the high adsorption and catalytic performance of lotus leaf biochar. The effect of pyrolysis temperature on the performance of biochar can be attributed to the change of N content and conformation and specific surface area in biochar. Moreover, the LLC800/PS system has a strong resistance to interference. This work can provide technical support for the preparation of high-performance adsorption-catalytic biochar and the development of high-performance activation materials for persulfate. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Approaches to Catalysis: Elimination of Environmental Pollutants)
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