Catalytic elimination of chlorinated organic pollutants by emerging single-atom catalysts

Chlorinated organic pollutants (COPs) are bioaccumulative, hazardous, and potentially carcinogenic, threatening human health and ecosystems. Catalytic degradation using single-atom catalysts (SACs) is emerging as a promising technology for COPs removal, accomplishing high efficiency in both aqueous and gaseous environments. This review systematically summarizes the recent development in catalytic degradation of COPs using a variety of SACs, focusing on the understanding of structure-performance relationships and key mechanisms involved. First, the SACs-promoted COPs dechlorination through the reduction process is evaluated. Second, the oxidation process for COPs degradation is presented, followed by the discussion of the synergic reduction–oxidation degradation process. Last, the existing challenges in this field and possible solutions are proposed, hoping to offer inspiration and guidance for the future applications of SACs in COPs elimination.