Application of α-Fe2O3-based heterogeneous photo-Fenton catalyst in wastewater treatment: A review of recent advances

With the gradual increase in industrialization, more and more pollutant emissions has caused severe pollution of surface water. The scientific community has confirmed that advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) are an effective measure to solve serious water pollution problems. Among the many AOPs, the photo-Fenton process has become an attractive alternative method for removing pollutants from water bodies due to its environmental friendliness, suitable price and wide range of applications. Iron-based materials widely using in the field of photo-Fenton catalysis due to their abundant reserves and low prices. On this basis, this paper focuses on reviewing the main advances in the catalytic oxidation of α-Fe2O3-based photo-Fenton materials for the treatment of refractory wastewater in recent years. We compared and analyzed the contemporary literature on the strategies to enhance the degradation efficiency of α-Fe2O3-based photo-Fenton catalysts by introducing oxygen vacancies, doping, and constructing multiphase catalysts. After that we proposed some strategies to optimize the performance of α-Fe2O3-based photo-Fenton catalysts, hoping to suggest new ideas for the future development of the field of photo-Fenton catalysis.