Facilitated catalytic ozonation of atrazine over highly stabilized Zn-Al layered double oxides composites: efficacy and mechanism

A series of Zn-Al Layered Double Oxides (ZnAl-LDO) composites were prepared by the hydrothermal and calcination method via employing the Zn-Al Layered Double Hydroxide (ZnAl-LDH) as the precursors in the present study. The structural properties and the catalytic ozonation activity of ZnrAl-T composites synthesized with different Zn/Al molar ratios and calcination temperatures were systematically investigated. Diversified characterizations were applied to analyze the phase structure and chemical composition of ZnrAl-T composites. As the calcination temperature increased, the layered ZnAl-LDH structure could be entirely destroyed and the crystallinity gradually improved. With the Zn/Al mole ratio of 4.0 and calcination temperature of 500 degrees C, the Zn4Al-500 composite obtained the outstanding catalytic ozonation performance for atrazine (ATZ) degradation with the pseudo-first-order constant of 0.5080 min(-1), which was 5 times more than that in O-3 alone. Meanwhile, the ATZ degradation efficiency was gradually enhanced from 44.1% to 99.9% within 3.0 min when the solution pH ranged from 3.0 to 10.0. Besides, the Zn4Al-500 composite exhibited splendid stability over multiple reaction cycles. In addition, the radical scavenging test and electron spin resonance measurement demonstrated that superoxide radical and hydroxyl radical are the dominant reactive species in O-3/Zn4Al-500 process. Moreover, nineteen and ten transformation products were detected in O-3 alone and O-3/Zn4Al-500 process, and possible degradation pathways of ATZ were further elucidated. Overall, the Zn4Al-500 composite would provide a potential alternative for pollutants removal due to its high catalytic ozonation efficiency, stability, and reusability.