Facile fabrication of amorphous Al/Fe based metal-organic framework as effective heterogeneous fenton catalyst for environmental remediation

Thirumoorthy Kulandaivel; Akshaya Subhramaniyan Rasappan; Kirankumar Venkatesan Savunthari; Melvin S Samuel; Mohanraj Kumar; Hans-Uwe Dahms; Aswin Kumar Anbalagan; Gopalakrishnan Mohan; Soorathep Kheawhom; Sivarasan Ganesan

doi:10.1007/s10653-024-01940-5

Facile fabrication of amorphous Al/Fe based metal-organic framework as effective heterogeneous fenton catalyst for environmental remediation

Environ Geochem Health. 2024 Apr 9;46(5):156. doi: 10.1007/s10653-024-01940-5.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Department of Chemistry, Saveetha School of Engineering, SIMATS, Chennai, 602 105, India. thirushchemi@gmail.com.
² Department of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, 10330, Thailand. thirushchemi@gmail.com.
³ Department of Physics, Coimbatore Institute of Technology, Coimbatore, 641014, India.
⁴ Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Northeastern University, Boston, MA, 02115, USA.
⁵ Department of Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering, Marquette University, Milwaukee, WI, 53233, USA.
⁶ Department of Environmental Engineering and Management, Chaoyang University of Technology, Taichung City, Taiwan, 413310, China.
⁷ Department of Biomedical Science and Environmental Biology, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung City, Taiwan, 807, China.
⁸ Department of Engineering and System Science, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, Taiwan, 30013, China.
⁹ Department of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, 10330, Thailand.
¹⁰ Center of Excellence On Advanced Materials for Energy Storage, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, 10330, Thailand.
¹¹ Bio-Circular-Green-Economy Technology and Engineering Center (BCGeTEC), Faculty of Engineering, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, 10330, Thailand.
¹² Department of Environmental Engineering and Management, Chaoyang University of Technology, Taichung City, Taiwan, 413310, China. ensivarasan@gm.cyut.edu.tw.

^# Contributed equally.

PMID: 38592524
DOI: 10.1007/s10653-024-01940-5

Abstract

This study presents a facile preparation and durable amorphous Fe and Al-based MOF nanoplate (AlFe-BTC MOFs) catalyst with notable stability in Fenton reactions. Rigorous characterization using XRD, HR-TEM, and BET confirms the amorphous nature of the synthesized AlFe-BTC MOFs, revealing mesopores (3.4 nm diameter), a substantial surface area (232 m²/g), and a pore volume of 0.69 cc/g. XPS analysis delineates distinct Al2p and Fe2p binding energy values, signifying specific chemical bonding. FE-SEM elemental mapping elucidates the distinctive distribution of Fe and Al within the framework of AlFe-BTC MOFs. In catalytic activity testing, the amorphous AlFe-BTC MOFs exhibited outstanding performance, achieving complete degradation of Methylene blue (MB) dye and 78% TOC removal over 45 min of treatment under mild reaction conditions. The catalyst's durability was assessed, revealing about 75% TOC removal and complete dye decomposition over five successive recycles, with less than 1 mg/L of Fe and Al leaching. UV-Vis spectra revealed the destruction of MB dye over multiple recycling studies. Based on this finding, the amorphous AlFe-BTC MOF nanoplates emerge as a promising solution for efficient dye removal from industrial wastewater, underscoring their potential in advanced environmental remediation processes.

Keywords: Amorphous AlFe-MOF; Heterogeneous Fenton; MB dye degradation; TOC Removal; Wastewater treatment.

MeSH terms

Environmental Restoration and Remediation*
Industry
Iron
Metal-Organic Frameworks*
Methylene Blue

Substances

Metal-Organic Frameworks
Iron
Methylene Blue