• • Carbon materials significantly enhance KMnO4 oxidation, with graphene oxide accelerating degradation of trace organic pollutants like sulfisoxazole, sulfamethazine, and bisphenol A, as demonstrated by Wang et al.
• • Two primary mechanisms drive pollutant degradation in KMnO4/CMs systems: electron transfer mediation by carbon materials and generation of reactive manganese species, with carbon materials acting as electron transfer mediators to accelerate electron transfer between pollutants and KMnO4.
• • Regeneration of deactivated carbon materials is achievable: thermal treatment at >350 °C under inert gas or chemical reduction removes surface oxygen groups, restoring catalytic performance; for example, reduced graphene oxide pyrolyzed at 700 °C for 2 h under nitrogen regained its sp2 structure and catalytic activity.
• • Organic solvent washing (e.g., ethanol, hexane, acetone) or ultrasonic treatment can remove adsorbed intermediates or MnO2 deposits, recovering catalytic activity without structural damage, as shown for graphite.