Controlled reduction of red mud waste to produce active systems for environmental applications: heterogeneous Fenton reaction and reduction of Cr(VI).

In this work, controlled reduction of red mud with H(2) was used to produce active systems for two different environmental applications, i.e. the heterogeneous Fenton reaction and the reduction of Cr(VI). Mössbauer, powder X-ray diffraction, thermal analyses and scanning electron microscopy analyses showed that at different temperatures, i.e. 300, 400, 500 and 600 degrees C, H(2) reduces red mud to different phases, mainly Fe(3)O(4), Fe(0)/Fe(3)O(4) and Fe(0). These Fe phases are dispersed on Al, Si and Ti oxides present in the red mud and show high reactivity towards two environmental applications, i.e. the heterogeneous Fenton reaction and the reduction of Cr(VI). Reduction with H(2) at 400 degrees C showed the best results for the oxidation of the model dye methylene blue with H(2)O(2) at neutral pH due to the presence of the composite Fe(0)/Fe(3)O(4). The reduced red mud at 500-600 degrees C produced Fe(0) highly active for the reduction of Cr(VI) in aqueous medium. Another feature of these red mud based system is that after deactivation due to extensive use they can be completely regenerated by simple treatment with H(2).