CWPO of bisphenol A with iron catalysts supported on microporous carbons from grape seeds activation

•Fe catalyst were prepared on pyrolized and activated grape seeds support.•Fe-GS-1 catalyst was highly active and stable upon CWPO of BPA.•Complete removal of BPA and 60% mineralization was reached at 80 °C.•BPA CWPO enhanced the biodegradability and reduced the toxicity of the effluent.

The catalytic wet peroxide oxidation (CWPO) of bisphenol A (BPA) with Fe catalysts supported on activated carbon from grape seeds (GS) has been studied. The GS were pyrolized (N2, 600 °C, 2 h) and subjected to activation upon partial gasification with air (400 °C, 2 h). Oxidized samples of the char and activated carbon were also obtained upon treatment with HNO3. The Fe catalysts were prepared by incipient wetness impregnation with ferric nitrate solution. They showed narrow microporosity, with surface area values ≈350-500 m2 g−1 and total iron contents between 2.8 and 4.2% wt. The CWPO experiments were carried out at 50-80 °C. The best catalyst allowed complete conversion of BPA (100 mg L−1) and a 60% TOC reduction in 3 h reaction time at 80 °C and the theoretical stoichiometric amount of H2O2 (530 mg L−1). The ecotoxicity of the effluent was negligible and the biodegradability was highly improved. In a long-term experiment (100 h), the catalyst suffered a loss of activity upon the early stages on stream (≈15 h), where about 20% of Fe was lost, followed by a highly stable behavior for the rest of the experiment.

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