A novel modification of poly(ethylene terephthalate) fiber using anthraquinone-2-sulfonate for accelerating azo dyes and nitroaromatics removal

• A novel modification of poly(ethylene terephthalate) fiber using AQS was prepared.
• AQS-modified fiber could enhance anaerobic biotransformation of azo dyes and nitroaromatics.
• AQS-modified fiber exhibited good stability.
• The biocompatibility of AQS-modified fiber was improved.

Polymer fibers have been used as biofilm carriers and membrane materials for wastewater treatment. However, little information was available about its chemical modification using quinone compounds for accelerating biotransformation of refractory pollutants. Present studies show that poly(ethylene terephthalate) fiber cloth (PETFC) could be modified by anthraquinone-2-sulfonate (AQS), an effective redox mediator, using a chemical method under mild conditions. AQS-modified PETFC (AQS-PETFC) exhibits better hydrophilicity and biocompatibility than unmodified PETFC. Further experiments show that the addition of AQS-PETFC resulted in the increased anaerobic biotransformation rates of various azo dyes and nitroaromatics. Their removal rates were about 1.6–3.7-fold higher than those in the absence of AQS-PETFC. Moreover, the decolorization efficiencies of azo dyes could remain over 93.7% of their original value during 5 runs. Therefore, AQS-PETFC as a novel functional material has potential applications for wastewater treatment.