Identification of Sulfate and Hydroxyl Radicals in Thermally Activated Persulfate

Thermal activation can induce persulfate (S2O82−) degradation to form sulfate radicals (SO4−•) that can undergo radical interconversion to form hydroxyl radicals (HO•) under alkaline conditions. The radicals SO4−•/HO• can be present either individually or simultaneously in the persulfate oxidation system. To identify the active radical species, a chemical probe method was developed. An excess of probe compounds was added to the system, and differences between the reactivity of the probes and the potential radical species were observed. The usage of various probes, including tert-butyl alcohol, phenol, and nitrobenzene (NB), for simultaneously identifying SO4−•/HO• was investigated. NB can only react with…

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  National Science Council