Constructing Ce–Mn/Al2O3 with different active components for low temperature catalytic degradation of chlorobenzene in soil

Soil remediation containing numerous organic contaminants is of great significance to ecological environment. Herein, the synergetic effects of Ce–Mn/Al2O3 with different active components on catalytic thermal desorption of chlorobenzene in soil were investigated. The optimized Ce–Mn/Al2O3 drastically enhance the desorption efficiency of chlorobenzene, and the corresponding conversion reaches 100 % within 1 h at a low temperature of 120 °C. The superior performance is ascribed to the formation of Ce–Mn solid solution during the calcination process, resulting in a certain lattice change to the generation of abundant oxygen vacancies and acidic sites. Combining with the analysis of in-situ diffuse reflectance infrared spectroscopy and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, the final products of chlorobenzene are decomposed into CO2, H2O, Cl2 and HCl. This work sheds light on the rational design of highly-active catalysts for practical applications of sustainable soil remediation.