# Activation of Molecular Oxygen by Electron‐Rich Materials for Sustainable Soil Remediation

## TL;DR

This paper explores using electron-rich materials to activate oxygen for cleaning polluted soil in an eco-friendly way.

## Contribution

The paper systematically reviews electron-rich materials and their mechanisms for activating molecular oxygen in soil remediation.

## Key findings

- Electron-rich materials like iron-based and carbon-based materials can activate O2 to generate ROS for soil remediation.
- Vacancy defects and heteroatom doping improve electron transfer for O2 activation.
- pH, oxygen content, and sunlight intensity influence ROS generation for pollutant removal.

## Abstract

Traditional advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) in soil remediation rely on external chemical oxidants, which have evident drawbacks of high cost, soil structure disruption, and high carbon footprint. Compared to traditional AOPs, molecular oxygen (O2) activation requires no external reagents, and can realize environment‐friendly oxidation with inexhaustible O2 resources. Electron‐rich materials can activate O2 to generate reactive oxygen species (ROS) to achieve in situ remediation of soil pollution. However, there is lack of knowledge about O2‐mediated oxygenation reactions for pollutant removal in soil. Therefore, this review systematically investigated the common electron‐rich materials that can be used for O2 activation in soil, including iron‐based materials, bismuth‐based materials, copper‐based materials, and porous carbon. The mechanisms of O2 activation by these materials are summarized. Multiple methods, including vacancy defect, heteroatom doping, and edge defect can be applied to modify these materials for improving their electron transfer capacities toward O2 activation. The applications of electron‐rich materials‐driven O2 activation in soil remediation are discussed, and pH, oxygen content, organic matter, and sunlight intensity are identified as main influencing factors on ROS generation for pollutant removal. The outcomes will provide important implications for the development of O2‐mediated oxygenation technology to achieve sustainable and efficient soil remediation.

Abundant molecular oxygen (O2) in nature can be utilized and activated by electron‐rich materials to generate reactive oxygen species for in situ engineering remediation of contaminated soil. The material types, activation mechanisms, and influencing factors are discussed in the research. This work will provide important implications for driving O2‐mediated oxygenation reactions for soil green and sustainable remediation.