Carbon matrix materials are regarded as one of the most important electrode materials for heavy metal detection. But even so, optimization procedures of carbon nanofibers (CNFs) for tracing Cd(II) and Pb(II) remains challenging. Here, zeolitic imidazolate framework (ZIF-8)/polyacrylonitrile (PAN)-derived nitrogen-doped porous carbon nanofibers (N-PCNFs) were investigated as a new electrode material for determining the concentration of Cd(II) and Pb(II). By optimizing electrochemical conditions such as deposition potential, deposition time, pH of buffer solution, and quantity of N-PCNFs loaded on a glassy carbon electrode (GCE), the linear response curves of Cd(II) and Pb(II) could be obtained. Due to the unique structural feature and N content, the N-PCNFs possess excellent detection limits of 0.8 μg L −1 for Cd(II) and 0.3 μg L −1 for Pb(II) (S/N = 3). To manifest the practical use of the sensor platform the concentration of Cd(II) and Pb(II) in normal tap and waste water were monitored. According to the ICP-MS results, the calculated recovery (97.0-107%) indicates that N-PCNFs have potential as a candidate material to monitor the concentration of Cd(II) and Pb(II) in practical samples.
A simple and low-temperature method was utilized to attach nanostructured ZnO to the surface of porous activated carbon (AC). The phase structure and surface morphology of the as-prepared sample were characterized. XRD analysis confirmed patterns for the wurtzite hexagonal phase of ZnO and AC from the sample. SEM demonstrated that the porous character and relatively larger surface area of ZnO/AC composite. In the photocatalytic degradation of coking wastewater, the ZnO/AC composite material showed effective photocatalytic activity. It could be attributed to highly efficient capture and transportation of photo-generated electrons from AC to ZnO.
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