Investigation of 4-chlorophenol degradation over a new designed Pt/γ-Al2O3 nanocatalyst synthesized by microemulsion method

The objective of the present study is degradation study of 4-chlorophenol (4-CP) as highly toxic pollutantby a new designed Pt/γ-Al2O3 nanocatalyst. The proposed shaped controlled nanocatalyst was synthesised inmicroemulsion systems containing 25% or 0% HCl. The prepared nanocatalysts were characterized by severaltechniques such as scanning electron microscopy (SEM), cyclic voltammetry (CV) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). Theeffect of some important parameters such as initial concentration of 4-CP (10-50 mg/L), solution pH (3-11), andtemperature (20-40 0C) on the degradation process was investigated by Box–Behnken design. The obtained resultsshowed that HCl concentration of the microemulsion system can affect the catalytic activity of Pt/γ-Al2O3. It isconfirmed that the catalyst synthesized in microemulsion system containing 25% HCl is most effective and maximumdegradation was obtained at pH=11, [4-CP]0=50 mg/L and reaction temperature of 400C.

Keywords:

4-chlorophenol (4-CP) , Microemulsion , Pt/γ-Al2O3 , Nanocatalyst