Surface-bound sulfate radical-dominated degradation of sulfamethoxazole in the CuFeAl-LDH/peroxymonosulfate system: The abundant hydroxyl groups enhancing efficiency mechanism

•Cu2Fe0.5Al0.5-LDH catalyst with abundant hydroxyl groups was constructed.•The abundant − OH on the surface contributed to generate ≡M−(O)OSO3− complexes.•The electron transfer between active metals promoted the generation of ROS.•Surface-bound SO4− played the dominant role in SMX degradation.•The activation mechanism of PMS and the degradation pathway of SMX were propose.