Beta-FeOOH/polyamide nanocomposites for the remediation of 4-chlorophenol from contaminated waters

The safe application of nanoparticles in water treatment processes is a growing concern globally, making the utilisation and deployment of appropriate support materials necessary. Hydrothermally synthesised β-FeOOH nanoparticles were incorporated into the polyamide matrix via an in-situ method to fabricate catalytic composites. The materials elucidation was effected using SEM, TEM, ATR-FTIR, XRD and nitrogen adsorption–desorption. The heterogeneous catalytic property of the β-FeOOH/polyamide nanocomposites was evaluated in an aqueous ozonation system with 4-chlorophenol (4CP) as the target organic pollutant. Aliquots were drawn at different time intervals and analysed by LCMS-TOF. The results showed high degradation of 4CP (98.52%) within 40 min compared with ozonation (62.94%). The degradation of 4CP under pH 3, 7 and 10 gave efficiencies of 83.56%, 90.16% and 96.01%, respectively, at 30 min. The composite exhibited excellent reuse potential over six cycles, with no iron leaching observed at different pH conditions. The chemical oxygen demand (COD) and total organic carbon (TOC) for natural wastewater were reduced by 54.62% and 89.22% respectively using the polymeric nanocomposites, while the optimum treatment duration was established using ecotoxicity assessment of the treated water. The novel composites gave excellent removal of 4CP from aqueous solutions.