A Hydroxyl Radical 'Factory': How Heterogeneous Ozone Catalysts Crack the Wastewater Treatment Challenge
Industry Background
In wastewater treatment, many people may find the term 'advanced oxidation technology' unfamiliar. But if you learn that it is used specifically against 'stubborn' pollutants - antibiotics in pharmaceutical wastewater, complex organics in landfill leachate, high-concentration COD in coal chemical wastewater - it probably becomes clear.
These wastewaters are hard to treat because they contain large amounts of stubborn organic pollutants. Ordinary biological treatment has limited effect on them and discharge struggles to meet standards. This is where advanced oxidation technology comes in.
Among advanced oxidation technologies, catalytic ozonation is becoming an industry favourite for being highly efficient and free of secondary pollution.
The Dilemma of Conventional Ozonation
Ozone itself is a strong oxidant with an oxidation potential of up to 2.07 V and can in theory decompose most organic matter. But conventional ozonation has two fatal problems:
First, the reaction is selective. Ozone molecules can only react directly with some organics and 'cannot get a grip' on many stubborn molecules.
Second, utilisation is low. Ozone does not dissolve easily in water, so a large amount escapes into the air before it can react - wasteful and potentially causing secondary pollution.
To solve these problems, researchers turned to adding a catalyst to the ozonation process - hence 'catalytic ozonation technology'.
SINOKLE's Breakthrough
The heterogeneous ozone catalyst independently developed by SINOKLE successfully solves the industry's long-standing difficulty.
The core of SINOKLE's catalyst is promoting the conversion of ozone into a stronger oxidising species - the hydroxyl radical (·OH). Hydroxyl radicals have an oxidation potential as high as 2.8 V, 35% higher than the ozone molecule, and their reaction is non-selective, able to 'attack' almost all organic matter.
When wastewater passes through a reactor filled with SINOKLE catalyst, ozone undergoes catalytic decomposition on the catalyst surface, producing large numbers of hydroxyl radicals. These 'oxidation masters' rapidly decompose organics, turning large-molecule pollutants into small molecules of carbon dioxide and water.
Core Technology One: Resistance to Chloride Poisoning
Many industrial wastewaters contain large amounts of chloride ions (such as chemical and papermaking wastewater). Chloride is the nemesis of ozone catalysts and severely reduces catalyst activity.
SINOKLE's catalyst uses a CeO₂ shell design: chloride ions form a stable complex (Ce-O-Cl) with CeO₂, greatly reducing the impact of chloride on catalytic activity. Practical tests show that the activity decay of SINOKLE catalyst in chloride-containing wastewater is far lower than the industry average.
Core Technology Two: Super-Hydrophilic Modification
Scaling on the catalyst surface is another industry difficulty. SINOKLE uses atomic deposition modification technology to make the catalyst surface 'super-hydrophilic', so water molecules form a protective layer on the surface that effectively prevents fouling and scaling.
Performance Data
The performance data of SINOKLE's heterogeneous ozone catalyst is impressive:
COD removal: improved by 30-50 percentage points
Ozone utilisation: stable above 98% (industry average about 60-70%)
Catalyst life: up to 5 years (industry average 2-3 years)
Long-term stability: after 180 days of continuous operation, activity decayed by only 7% (industry average > 30%)
Application Scenarios
SINOKLE's heterogeneous ozone catalyst has been widely applied to various difficult wastewaters:
Coal chemical wastewater: high COD, refractory organics
Landfill leachate: complex composition, high toxicity
High-salinity wastewater: high salt content, hard for ordinary processes
Antibiotic wastewater: containing special pollutants such as antibiotics
Final Thoughts
Advanced oxidation technology is an important direction for the wastewater treatment industry. SINOKLE's heterogeneous ozone catalyst uses technological innovation to solve a long-standing industry difficulty, making wastewater treatment more efficient, more economical and more environmentally friendly.
