title: Mechanism of enhanced nitrate reduction via micro-electrolysis at the powdered zero-valent iron/activated carbon interface.
abstract: Nitrate reduction by zero-valent iron (Fe(0)) powder always works well only at controlled pH lower than 4 due to the formation of iron (hydr)oxides on its surface. Fe(0) powder combined with activated carbon (AC), i.e., Fe(0)/AC micro-electrolysis system, was first introduced to enhance nitrate reduction in aqueous solution. Comparative study was carried out to investigate nitrate reduction by Fe(0)/AC system and Fe(0) under near-neutral conditions, showing that the Fe(0)/AC system successfully reduced nitrate even at initial pH 6 with the reduction efficiency of up to 73%, whereas for Fe(0) only ∼10%. The effect of Fe(0) to AC mass ratio on nitrate reduction efficiency was examined. Easier nitrate reduction was achieved with more contact between Fe(0) and AC as the result of decreasing Fe(0) to AC mass ratio. Ferrous ion and oxidation-reduction potential were measured to understand the mechanism of enhanced nitrate reduction by Fe(0)/AC micro-electrolysis. The results suggest that a relative potential difference drives much more electrons from Fe(0) to AC, thus generating adsorbed atomic hydrogen which makes it possible for nitrate to be reduced at near-neural pH. Fe(0)/AC micro-electrolysis thus presents a great potential for practical application in nitrate wastewater treatment without excessive pH adjustment.
authors.affiliation: School of Environmental and Chemical Engineering, Shanghai University, 333 Nanchen Road, Shanghai 200444, PR China.
authors.forename: Jinghuan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Luo
authors.affiliation: School of Environmental and Chemical Engineering, Shanghai University, 333 Nanchen Road, Shanghai 200444, PR China.
authors.forename: Guangyu
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Song
authors.affiliation: School of Environmental and Chemical Engineering, Shanghai University, 333 Nanchen Road, Shanghai 200444, PR China. Electronic address: liujianyong@shu.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Jianyong
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: School of Environmental and Chemical Engineering, Shanghai University, 333 Nanchen Road, Shanghai 200444, PR China.
authors.forename: Guangren
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Qian
authors.affiliation: ARC Centre of Excellence for Functional Nanomaterials, Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD 4072, Australia. Electronic address: gordonxu@uq.edu.au.
authors.forename: Zhi Ping
authors.initials: ZP
authors.lastname: Xu
mesh_terms: D002606:Charcoal / Q000737:chemistry*; D004572:Electrolysis; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D007501:Iron / Q000737:chemistry*; D009566:Nitrates / Q000737:chemistry*; D010084:Oxidation-Reduction; D011208:Powders / Q000737:chemistry*; D013499:Surface Properties
chemical_list: D009566:Nitrates; D011208:Powders; D002606:Charcoal; D007501:Iron
keywords: Electron transfer; Fe(0)/AC composite; Micro-electrolysis system; Nitrate reduction