Low-coordinated Mn–N2 sites in graphene oxide induce peroxydisulfate activation for tetracycline degradation: Process optimization and theoretical calculation

Atom-dispersed low-coordinated transition metal-N x catalysts exhibit excellent efficiency in activating peroxydisulfate (PDS) for environmental remediation. However, their catalytic performance is limited due to metal-N coordination number and single-atom loading amount. In this study, low-coordinated nitrogen-doped graphene oxide (GO) confined single-atom Mn catalyst (Mn-SA/NGO) was synthesized by molten salt-assisted pyrolysis and coupled to PDS for degradation of tetracycline (TC) in water. Aberration-corrected high-angle annular dark-field scanning transmission electron microscopy (AC-HAADF-STEM) and X-ray absorption fine structure spectroscopy (XAFS) analysis showed the successful doping of single-atom Mn (weight percentage 1.6%) onto GO and the formation of low-coordinated Mn–N 2 sites. The optimized parameters obtained by Box-Behnken Design achieved 100% TC removal in both prediction and experimental results. The Mn-SA/NGO + PDS system had strong anti-interference ability for TC removal in the presence of anions. Besides, Mn-SA/NGO possessed good reusability and stability. O 2 •− , •OH, and 1 O 2 were the main active species for TC degradation, and the TC mineralization reached 85.1%. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations confirmed that the introduction of single atoms Mn could effectively enhance adsorption and activation of PDS. The findings provide a reference for the synthesis of high-performance single-atom catalysts for effective removal of antibiotics. • Low-coordinated Mn–N 2 sites was successfully loaded on GO. • TC was almost completely removed with a mineralization rate of 85.1%. • Mn-SA/NGO has a wide pH adaptation range and strong anti-interference ability. • Adsorption and activation of Mn-SA/NGO was easier by DFT calculation. • O 2 . •− , •OH, and 1 O 2 were the main active species for TC degradation.