Performance of Copper as a Catalyst for Fenton-like Processes in Highly Saline Solutions

Orts, Xavier; Arévalo, Jordi; Arques, Antonio; Amat, Ana M.; Santos-Juanes, Lucas

doi:10.3390/molecules30112298

This is an early access version, the complete PDF, HTML, and XML versions will be available soon.

Open AccessArticle

Performance of Copper as a Catalyst for Fenton-like Processes in Highly Saline Solutions

by

Xavier Orts

,

Jordi Arévalo

,

Antonio Arques

,

Ana M. Amat

and

Lucas Santos-Juanes

^*

Advanced Oxidation Processes Group, Department of Textile and Paper Engineering, Universitat Politècnica de València, Plaza Ferrándiz y Carbonell 1, 03801 Alcoy, Spain

^*

Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

Molecules 2025, 30(11), 2298; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules30112298

Submission received: 3 April 2025 / Revised: 12 May 2025 / Accepted: 19 May 2025 / Published: 23 May 2025

(This article belongs to the Section Applied Chemistry)

Download Versions Notes

Abstract

The catalytic performance of copper in Fenton-like processes was investigated under conditions of elevated chloride concentrations. Model solutions were prepared containing four target pollutants (50 mg/L each), Cu (II) at 50 mg/L, and a stoichiometric dose of hydrogen peroxide sufficient for complete oxidation of the organic matter. Chloride levels ranged from low concentrations to those representative of both synthetic and natural seawater (36 g/L NaCl). An increase in chloride concentration consistently led to greater pollutant removal efficiency. The influence of pH on process performance was also assessed in saline and real seawater matrices. An optimal pH range between 6 and 7 was identified in both cases, where the reactivity of copper–chloride complexes was maximized while the formation of insoluble, catalytically inactive copper species was suppressed. Monitoring of pH, soluble copper concentration, and hydrogen peroxide consumption supported the conclusion that real seawater provides the most favorable conditions for copper–chloride catalyzed Fenton-like reactions. These results demonstrate the high potential of copper-based advanced oxidation processes in saline environments, particularly in applications where traditional methods exhibit limited efficiency.

Keywords: Fenton-like; copper; chlorides; seawater

Share and Cite

MDPI and ACS Style

Orts, X.; Arévalo, J.; Arques, A.; Amat, A.M.; Santos-Juanes, L. Performance of Copper as a Catalyst for Fenton-like Processes in Highly Saline Solutions. Molecules 2025, 30, 2298. https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules30112298

AMA Style

Orts X, Arévalo J, Arques A, Amat AM, Santos-Juanes L. Performance of Copper as a Catalyst for Fenton-like Processes in Highly Saline Solutions. Molecules. 2025; 30(11):2298. https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules30112298

Chicago/Turabian Style

Orts, Xavier, Jordi Arévalo, Antonio Arques, Ana M. Amat, and Lucas Santos-Juanes. 2025. "Performance of Copper as a Catalyst for Fenton-like Processes in Highly Saline Solutions" Molecules 30, no. 11: 2298. https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules30112298

APA Style

Orts, X., Arévalo, J., Arques, A., Amat, A. M., & Santos-Juanes, L. (2025). Performance of Copper as a Catalyst for Fenton-like Processes in Highly Saline Solutions. Molecules, 30(11), 2298. https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules30112298

Article Menu

Performance of Copper as a Catalyst for Fenton-like Processes in Highly Saline Solutions

Abstract

Share and Cite

Article Metrics

Article Access Statistics

Further Information

Guidelines

MDPI Initiatives

Follow MDPI