Degradation of Pantoprazole in aqueous solution using magnetic nanoscaled Fe3O4/CeO2 composite: Effect of system parameters and degradation pathway

In this work, magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) Fe3O4/CeO2 synthesized by the method of impregnation oxidation-precipitation were used as the heterogeneous catalyst for the degradation of Pantoprazole. Response surface methodology based on central composite design was used to investigate the individual and the interactive effects of three process parameters on the Pantoprazole degradation, i.e. the initial pH of the solution, the dosage of H2O2 and the initial concentration of Pantoprazole. Under the optimal conditions of pH 3.3, H2O2 30.0 mM, Pantoprazole 20.0 mg L-1, catalyst 2.0 g L-1 and 35 degrees C, the degradation percentage of Pantoprazole was 98.0% within 120 min. The obtained results agreed well with the modeling prediction (R-2 = 0.9924, and Adj-R-2 = 0.9889), and the degradation reaction well followed the first-order kinetic with R-2 = 0.9986. According to the results of the iron leaching and the effects of the radical scavengers and the intermediates determination, a possible pathway of Pantoprazole degradation was proposed based on center dot OH mechanism. (C) 2017 Elsevier B. V. All rights reserved.