At present, the use of conventional wastewater processes is becoming increasingly challenging, mainly due to the presence of biorecalcitrant organic matter. Advanced oxidation processes such as Fenton, Fenton-like and hybrid processes have been successfully employed for the treatment of highly concentrated and toxic non-biodegradable pollutants. Here, a series of bimetallic catalysts, based on Cu/Fe supported over ZrO2, were investigated for the mineralization of ibuprofen with a heterogeneous Fenton-like reaction. The materials were prepared by incipient wetness impregnation and characterized by standard techniques. Temperature-programmed experiments highlighted the promotion of the reduction in CuO due to the synergistic effects of the coupled redox cycles of copper (Cu2+/Cu+) and iron (Fe+3/Fe+2). 5%Cu-5þ/ZrO2 not only displays the highest ibuprofen mineralization (83%) under optimum conditions but also exploits its activity in a wider range of pH (3–5) with extremely low metal leaching. The recycling of bimetallic catalysts reveals that only the 5%Cu-5þ/ZrO2 system is able to provide sustainable activity in heterogeneous Fenton process.
