Enhanced Fe(OH)2-Driven Reductive Dechlorination via Shortened Fe-O Bonds and Colloidal Medium

Fe2+ is usually adsorbed to the surface of iron-bearing clay, and iron (hydr)oxide in groundwater. However, the reductive activity of Fe(OH)2, a prevalent intermediate during the transformation of Fe2+, remains unclear. In this study, high-purity Fe(OH)2 was synthesized and tested for its activity in the degradation of carbon tetrachloride (CT). XRD data confirm that the synthesized material is a pure Fe(OH)2 crystal, exhibiting sharp peaks of (001) and (100) facets. Zeta potential analysis confirms that the off-white Fe(OH)2 is a colloidal suspension with a positive charge of ∼+35-50 mV. FTIR spectra reveal the formation of a coordination compound Fe2+ with OH−/OD−, derived from NaOH/OD. SEM and HRTEM results demonstrate that the Fe(OH)2 crystal has a regular octahedral structure with a size of ∼30-70 nm and average lattice spacings of 2.58 Å. Mössbauer spectrum verifies that the Fe2+ in Fe(OH)2/Fe(OD)2 is hexacoordinated with six Fe-O bonds. XAFS data demonstrate that the Fe-O bonds become shorter as the OH−:Fe(II) ratios increase. DFT results indicate that the (100) crystal face of Fe(OH)2 more readily transfers electrons to CT. In addition to being adsorbed to iron compounds, structural Fe2+ compounds such as Fe(OH)2 could also accelerate the electron transfer from Fe2+ to CT through shortened Fe-O bonds. The rate constant of CT reduction by Fe(OH)2 is as high as 0.794 min−1 when the OH−:Fe(II) ratio is 2.5 in water. This study aims to enhance our understanding of the structure-reactivity relationship of Fe2+ compounds in groundwater, particularly in relation to electron transfer mechanisms.