Study on the performance test of Fe–Ce–Al/MMT catalysts for phenol-containing wastewater

In this study, a series of Fe–Ce–Al/MMT catalysts were prepared, characterized by XRD, SEM and N2 adsorption/desorption, and treated with phenol-containing wastewater. The results showed that the optimal Fe–Ce–Al/MMT catalyst with a molar ratio of (Fe + Ce)/(Fe + Ce + Al) of 5.5% has better grain development, more regular appearance, more uniform particle distribution, specific surface area of 180.9 m2/g and pore volume of 0.1858 cm3/g. The optimum technological conditions obtained by single factor test are as follows: initial pH value was 4, dosage of H2O2 was 13 mL/L, dosage of Fe2+ was 3500 mg/L, reaction temperature was 60 °C, and reaction time was 180 min. Under these conditions, the phenol removal rate was 98.21%. Based on the single factor test, the response surface test was carried out, and the results are as follows: initial pH value was 3, dosage of H2O2 was 15.64 mL/L, dosage of Fe2+ was 4884.37 mg/L, reaction temperature was 53.05 °C, and reaction time was 217.1 min. Under these conditions, the phenol removal rate was up to 98.75%.