Degradation of Refractory Organic Pollutants by Catalytic Ozonation—Activated Carbon and Mn-Loaded Activated Carbon as Catalysts

A novel catalyst for the ozonation process was prepared by loading manganese on the granular activated carbon (GAC). Nitrobenzene was used as a model refractory organic micropollutant in this study. The catalytic activity of GAC and the Mn-loaded GAC were studied respectively. The removal efficiency of nitrobenzene by Mn-loaded GAC catalyzed ozonation could reach 34.2–49.9%, with the oxidation efficiency being about 1.5–2.0 times higher than that achieved in GAC catalyzed ozonation and 2.0–3.0 times higher than that achieved by ozonation alone. The effect of pH and the t -butanol on the GAC/ozone process was discussed. The optimum condition for preparing the catalyst was studied.