Enhanced Electrolytic Production of Hypochlorous Acid Using Phosphorus-Modified Carbon Felt Electrodes: A Study in Disinfectant Synthesis

Shuoqi Ren; Qiwei Zhang; Yuan Mu; Chongwei Cui; Shan Qiu; Fengxia Deng

doi:10.1016/j.chemosphere.2024.143367

Enhanced Electrolytic Production of Hypochlorous Acid Using Phosphorus-Modified Carbon Felt Electrodes: A Study in Disinfectant Synthesis

Chemosphere. 2024 Sep 19:143367. doi: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2024.143367. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Shuoqi Ren¹, Qiwei Zhang¹, Yuan Mu¹, Chongwei Cui², Shan Qiu³, Fengxia Deng⁴

Affiliations

¹ State Key Laboratory of Urban Water Resource and Environment, School of Environment, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin, 150090, P. R. China.
² State Key Laboratory of Urban Water Resource and Environment, School of Environment, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin, 150090, P. R. China. Electronic address: cuichongwei1991@126.com.
³ State Key Laboratory of Urban Water Resource and Environment, School of Environment, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin, 150090, P. R. China. Electronic address: qiushan@hit.edu.cn.
⁴ State Key Laboratory of Urban Water Resource and Environment, School of Environment, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin, 150090, P. R. China. Electronic address: dengfx@hit.edu.cn.

PMID: 39306113
DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2024.143367

Abstract

In this study, we fabricated phosphorus-modified carbon felt electrode anodes for chloride oxidation in saline solutions to produce HClO via electrocatalysis, forming a compound fungicide saline applicable for debridement and disinfection. A low-cost phosphorus-modified carbon felt electrode (P@CF) with high chlorine evolution reaction activity was synthesized to address the reduced efficiency of CER and the solution's pH increase. Heteroatoms P and O were introduced into the carbon felt by phosphoric acid activation followed by heat treatment. The maximum active chlorine concentration on the P@CF electrode could reach 616.8 mg/L in 60 minutes under the optimal synthesis conditions of a phosphoric acid mass fraction of 30%, a phosphoric acid impregnation time of 3 h, and a heat treatment temperature of 300°C. The active chlorine concentration was 1.8 times higher on the P@CF electrode compared to the original carbon felt electrode. The optimal reaction conditions for the generation of active chlorine were as follows: salt concentration of 9 g/L, voltage of 7 V, and electrode spacing of 2 cm as verified by response surfaces. This electrolysis reaction follows one-stage reaction kinetics. Subsequently, the disinfection efficacy of the produced disinfectants was examined. The prepared disinfectant was also compared to a commercially available hypochlorite disinfectant, showing similar disinfection effects on E. coli for both.

Keywords: Hypochlorous acid; heteroatom doping; stability; sterilizing effect.