Low-Temperature Thermocatalytic Disinfection of Using Co-Doped MnO Bimetallic Oxide Catalysts.

Pathogenic in wastewater necessitates energy-efficient disinfection methods. This study developed cobalt-doped manganese oxide (CoMnO ) catalysts via redox-hydrothermal synthesis for low-temperature thermocatalytic disinfection. Systematic characterization (XRD, SEM, and XPS) revealed that Co doping induced a phase transition from α-MnO to δ-MnO, forming nanoflower-like structures with enhanced oxygen vacancies and optimized Mn /Mn ratios. The optimized CoMnO catalyst achieved complete inactivation of K-12 (5.3 lg CFU mL) within 1 h at 50 °C, significantly outperforming pure MnO and CoO. Mechanistic studies identified superoxide radicals (·O ) and singlet oxygen (O) as the dominant reactive oxygen species (ROS), generated through lattice oxygen release and oxygen vacancy regeneration via the Mars-van Krevelen mechanism. ROS-induced membrane damage led to intracellular leakage and enzyme inactivation. The catalyst demonstrated good stability (>99.5% efficiency after four cycles) and efficacy across a relevant pH range (5.5-7.5). This work presents a sustainable strategy for efficient low-temperature water disinfection using transition metal oxide catalysts.