Green synthesis of laterite iron-based nanocatalysts using Psidium guajava and Macaranga peltata plant extract for its catalytic application in Fenton’s oxidation of triclosan

Abstract

Phytosynthesis of nanoiron catalysts was carried out using natural laterite extract as a precursor and Psidium guajava and Macaranga peltata leaf extract. Morphological, mineralogical and chemical characterization was done using SEM, XRD, EDS and FTIR. GL(Fe<inf>3</inf>O<inf>4</inf>)NCs were confirmed for their catalytic role in the degradation of triclosan via Fenton’s oxidation. Maximum triclosan degradation of 96.5% and 99.1% for GPsL(Fe<inf>3</inf>O<inf>4</inf>)NCs and GMpL(Fe<inf>3</inf>O<inf>4</inf>)NCs was observed at a catalyst dosage of 1.0 g/L and hydrogen peroxide dosage of 300 mg/L. A notable increase of 14.5% in the efficiency of contaminant removal was observed on increase in hydrogen peroxide with a rate constant doubled. Reusability studies for both catalysts were carried out for five consecutive cycles, and catalysts were shown to have efficient removal of triclosan in each case. The present study claims cost-effective treatment of triclosan with Fenton’s oxidation using green synthesized natural laterite iron catalyst for the degradation of triclosan in water. The degradation of triclosan in Fenton’s oxidation follows a pseudo-first-order reaction with a linear fit. © The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature 2023, corrected publication 2023.