Core–Shell Fe/FeS Nanoparticles with Controlled Shell Thickness for Enhanced Trichloroethylene Removal

Zero-valent iron nanoparticles (nZVI) treated by reduced sulfur compounds (i.e., sulfidated nZVI, S-nZVI) have attracted increased attention as promising materials for environmental remediation. While the preparation of S-nZVI and its reactions with various groundwater contaminants such as trichloroethylene (TCE) were already a subject of several studies, nanoparticle synthesis procedures investigated so far were suited mainly for laboratory-scale preparation with only a limited possibility of easy and cost-effective large-scale production and FeS shell property control. This study presents a novel approach for synthesizing S-nZVI using commercially available nZVI particles that are treated with sodium sulfide in a concentrated slurry. This leads to S-nZVI particles that do not contain hazardous boron residues and can be easily prepared off-site. The resulting S-nZVI exhibits a core–shell structure where zero-valent iron is the dominant phase in the core, while the shell contains mostly amorphous iron sulfides. The average FeS shell thickness can be controlled by the applied sulfide concentration. Up to a 12-fold increase in the TCE removal and a 7-fold increase in the electron efficiency were observed upon amending nZVI with sulfide. Although the FeS shell thickness correlated with surface-area-normalized TCE removal rates, sulfidation negatively impacted the particle surface area, resulting in an optimal FeS shell thickness of approximately 7.3 nm. This corresponded to a particle S/Fe mass ratio of 0.0195. At all sulfide doses, the TCE degradation products were only fully dechlorinated hydrocarbons. Moreover, a nearly 100% chlorine balance was found at the end of the experiments, further confirming complete TCE degradation and the absence of chlorinated transformation products. The newly synthesized S-nZVI particles thus represent a promising remedial agent applicable at sites contaminated with TCE.