Degradation of organic pollutants using a photo-enzymatic cascade process

Abstract

Objective: A strategy of degrading organic pollutants using a photo-enzymatic cascade process was established, to avoid the problem caused by the use of H2O2 as oxidant in peroxidase-catalyzed reaction. Methods: After screening of photosensitizer, reaction pH and temperature, phenols and azo dyes can be degraded efficiently herein, by a combination of photo-catalytic H2O2 generation in situ and peroxidase-catalyzed oxidation. Results: 8 organic pollutions in different structure can be degraded with good to excellent degradation rate within 40 minutes. Moreover, the mechanism of this degradation process was proposed. Conclusion: Compared with classic methods of degrading organic pollutants, this photo-enzymatic cascade process has an advantage of safety and efficiency, and has application potential in environmental and food safety.

Keywords

• organic pollutions
• photoenzymatic reaction
• peroxidase
• degradation