Persulfate activation with catalyst derived from iron‐rich municipal sludge for atrazine degradation

Abstract BACKGROUND Advanced oxidation technology based on persulfate has potential application in the treatment of refractory wastewater. However, due to the high cost of persulfate activation, the promotion of this technology is limited. Economical and efficient persulfate activators need to be developed. RESULTS A highly efficient persulfate activator was prepared based on iron‐rich municipal sludge, which could realize resource utilization of sludge. The removal rate of atrazine could achieve 81.3% within 2 h, and the reaction conditions were atrazine concentration of 4 mg L −1 , sodium persulfate concentration of 110 mg L −1 , and activator concentration of 100 mg L −1 . CONCLUSION The prepared activators had good pore structures and contained iron complexes, which enabled the effective activation of sodium persulfate for atrazine degradation. The activators were relatively stable, had a wide pH application range, and their activation efficiency could be significantly improved by increasing the temperature. The generation path of free radical mainly based on sulfate radical was speculated, and the possible mechanism of persulfate activation was proposed. © 2025 Society of Chemical Industry (SCI).