Degradation of atenolol via heterogeneous activation of persulfate by using BiOCl@FeO catalyst under simulated solar light irradiation.

Efficient oxidative degradation of pharmaceutical pollutants in aquatic environments is of great importance. This study used magnetic BiOCl@FeO catalyst to activate persulfate (PS) under simulated solar light irradiation. This degradation system was evaluated using atenolol (ATL) as target pollutant. Four reactive species were identified in the sunlight/BiOCl@FeO/PS system. The decreasing order of the contribution of each reactive species on ATL degradation was as follows: h ≈ HO > O > SO. pH significantly influenced ATL degradation, and an acidic condition favored the reaction. High degradation efficiencies were obtained at pH 2.3-5.5. ATL degradation rate increased with increased catalyst and PS contents. Moreover, ATL mineralization was higher in the sunlight/BiOCl@FeO/PS system than in the sunlight/BiOCl@FeO or sunlight/PS system. Nine possible intermediate products were identified through LC-MS analysis, and a degradation pathway for ATL was proposed. The BiOCl@FeO nanomagnetic composite catalyst was synthesized in this work. This catalyst was easily separated and recovered from a treated solution by using a magnet, and it demonstrated a high catalytic activity. Increased amount of the BiOCl@FeO catalyst obviously accelerated the efficiency of ATL degradation, and the reusability of the catalyst allowed the addition of a large dosage of BiOCl@FeO to improve the degradation efficiency.