In-situ structural modification on spinel oxide to achieve efficient removal of refractory organics: Triple...

Spinel oxide has attracted interest in wastewater treatment, owing to its visible light (VIS) adsorption properties and bimetallic synergism. However, owing to the inefficient separation of photogenerated carriers and poor redox property, there is an urgent need to develop appropriate modification strategies to address these bottlenecks. This study aimed to develop CuFe₂O₄/CuFeSx (CFO/CFSx) heterojunction with oxygen vacancies (OVs) via an in-situ structural modification to trigger the generation of more radicals with low oxidant consumption for the efficient degradation of refractory organics. This customized heterojunction improved the light-trapping ability and photoelectrons utilisation, promoting the reduction of metal valence by photoelectrons to enhance the activation of peroxymonosulfate (PMS). Meanwhile, OVs also provided more active sites to activate PMS to generate superoxide radicals (O₂^-), which were further converted to hydroxyl radicals (OH) to ensure considerable oxidation capability. Notably, Sulfur-mediated metal valence reduction boosted the cycle of Cu(I)/Cu(II) and Fe(II)/Fe(III), guaranteeing the regeneration of the active sites. Triple optimisation of the modified spinel oxide presented a striking oxidant utilisation efficiency with a substantial increase in the concentration of radicals. This study provides a simple and reliable reference for designing high-performance CuFe₂O₄ (CFO) photocatalysts for environmental remediation.