Ce/Fe bimetallic MOF derivatives in situ modified bulk carbon aerogel composite cathode for efficient heterogeneous electro-fenton degradation of chloramphenicol

In this study, we utilized a Ce-modified iron-based metal-organic framework derivative to in situ modify bulk CA (Ce/Fe@C-CA) as a bifunctional composite cathode to degrade chloramphenicol (CAP) in the heterogeneous electro-Fenton (EF) process. The composite cathode exhibited satisfactory CAP degradation efficiency, wide pH adaptability (2–9) and low metal leaching. Under the appropriate conditions (pH = 5, current density = 6 mA/cm2), 94.89% of CAP degradation efficiency was obtained within 60 min. The introduction of Ce increased the oxygen vacancy content, enhanced the cathodic electrochemical activity, promoted the production of a variety of reactive oxygen species and participates in the degradation of CAP, of which ·OH and 1O2 were dominant. Meanwhile, the electron transfer and synergistic catalysis between Ce and Fe promoted the regeneration of the metal active site, which was beneficial to improve the reuse stability of the Ce/Fe@C-CA cathode. The degradation pathway of CAP was obtained by DFT calculations and UPLC-MS/MS detection. This study not only proposed a novel bifunctional electro-Fenton cathode, but also provided a effective strategy for the treatment of actual pharmaceutical wastewater.