Enhanced catalytic degradation of ciprofloxacin with FeS2/SiO2 microspheres as heterogeneous Fenton catalyst: Kinetics, reaction pathways and mechanism

[Display omitted] •FeS2/SiO2 microspheres made the reaction of Fe2+ and H2O2 smoothly continuous.•Stability of FeS2/SiO2 microspheres was superior to that of bare FeS2.•A low EDTA concentration did positively affect the degradation rate of CIP.•An enhanced CIP degradation was due to both adsorption and oxidation processes.•A reaction pathway mechanism for the enhanced degradation of CIP was proposed. In this study, the application of FeS2/SiO2 microspheres as a catalyst to activate H2O2 for the degradation of ciprofloxacin (CIP) was systematically investigated. Results demonstrated that the presence of SiO2 microspheres on the surface of FeS2 could effectively make the reaction of aqueous Fe2+ and H2O2 smoothly continuous by controlling the release of aqueous Fe2+ from FeS2. Nearly 100% of CIP was degraded after 60min under the optimum conditions. A superior performance on the CIP degradation and high reusability of the catalyst was obtained in FeS2/SiO2 microspheres activated H2O2 system. A low concentration of ethylene diamine tetraacetie acid (EDTA) did positively affect the degradation rate of CIP. A synergetic effect between adsorption and oxidation processes contributed to the significant enhancement of CIP degradation. Seven oxidation intermediates were identified during the CIP degradation process, and the direct HO oxidation proved to be a main CIP degradation pathway. For degradation pathway of CIP, oxidation of piperazine ring would be its first step, followed by cleavage of the heterocyclic ring. Subsequently, the substitution, hydroxylation and decarboxylation processes occurred. This is the first report on the feasibility of FeS2/SiO2 microspheres activated H2O2 system for the enhanced degradation of CIP.