Enhanced mechanism of copper doping in magnetic biochar for peroxymonosulfate activation and sulfamethoxazole degradation

Magnetic biochar is excellent for separation and peroxymonosulfate (PMS) activation. Copper doping could improve the catalytic capability of magnetic biochar significantly. In this study, cow dung biochar is applied to investigate the effects of copper doping on the magnetic biochar, focusing on the specific influence on the consumption of active sites, the production of oxidative species and the toxicity of degradation intermediates. The results showed that copper doping promoted the uniform distribution of iron sites on the biochar surface and reduced iron aggregation. At the same time, copper doping interpreted the biochar with larger specific surface area, which was beneficial to the adsorption and degradation of sulfamethoxazole (SMX). The SMX degradation kinetic constant with copper-doped magnetic biochar was 0.0403 min−1, which was 1.45 times than that of magnetic biochar. Besides, copper doping might accelerate the consumption of CO, Fe0, Fe2+ sites and hinder the activation of PMS at copper-related sites. Furthermore, copper doping promoted the PMS activation by magnetic biochar through accelerated electron transfer. For the oxidative species, copper doping accelerated the production of hydroxyl radicals, singlet oxygen, and superoxide radicals in solution and inhibited the generation of sulfate radicals. In addition, SMX could be directly decomposed into less toxic intermediates in the copper-doped magnetic biochar/PMS system. In conclusion, this paper provides insight and analysis of the advantages of copper doping on the magnetic biochar, which helps to facilitate the design and practical application of bimetallic biochar.