Highly Efficient Peroxymonosulfate Electroactivation on Co(OH)₂ Nanoarray Electrode for Pefloxacin Degradation

The activation of PMS to produce active species is an attractive technique for antibiotic degradation but is restricted to the low reaction kinetics and high costs. In this work, a cobalt-based catalyst was prepared by in situ electrodeposition to enhance the electrically activated PMS process for the degradation of antibiotics. Almost 100% of pefloxacin (PFX) was removed within 10 min by employing Co(OH)₂ as the catalyst in the electrically activated peroxymonosulfate (PMS) process, and the reaction kinetic constant reached 0.52 min^-1. The redox processes of Co²⁺ and Co³⁺ in Co(OH)₂ catalysts were considered to be the main pathways for PMS activation, in which ¹O₂ was the main active species. Furthermore, this strategy could also achieve excellent degradation efficiency for other organic pollutants. This study provides an effective and low-cost strategy with no secondary pollution for pollutant degradation.