Rapid degradation of malachite green by CoFe₂O₄-SiC foam under microwave radiation

This study demonstrated rapid degradation of malachite green (MG) by a microwave (MW)-induced enhanced catalytic process with CoFe₂O₄-SiC foam. The catalyst was synthesized from CoFe₂O₄ particles and SiC foam by the hydrothermal method. X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy techniques were used to confirm that CoFe₂O₄ particles were settled on the surface of SiC foam. In this experiment, a novel fixed-bed reactor was set up with this catalyst for a continuous flow process in a MW oven. The different parameters that affect the MW-induced degradation rate of MG were explored. The MW irradiation leads to the effective catalytic degradation of MG, achieving 95.01% degradation within 5 min at pH 8.5. At the same time, the good stability and applicability of CoFe₂O₄-SiC foam for the degradation process were also discussed, as well as the underlying mechanism. In brief, these findings make the CoFe₂O₄-SiC foam an excellent catalyst that could be used in practical rapid degradation of MG.