Magnetic retrievable Ag/AgBr/ZnFe2O4 photocatalyst for efficient removal of organic pollutant under visible light

In the present work, a visible-light-driven Ag/AgBr/ZnFe₂O₄ photocatalyst has been successfully synthesized via a deposition–precipitation and photoreduction method. The crystal structure, chemical composition, morphology and optical properties of the as-prepared nanocomposites were characterized by X-ray diffraction spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscope, UV–vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy and photoluminescence. The photocatalytic activities of the Ag/AgBr/ZnFe₂O₄ nanocomposites were evaluated through the photodegradation of gaseous toluene and methyl orange (MO) under visible light. The results revealed that the as-prepared Ag/AgBr/ZnFe₂O₄ nanocomposite exhibited excellent photocatalytic activity. The degrading efficiency of MO could still reach 90% after four cycles, and the Ag/AgBr/ZnFe₂O₄ nanocomposite could be recycled easily by a magnet. Additionally, the enhanced photocatalytic mechanism was discussed according to the trapping experiments, which indicated that the photo-generated holes (h⁺) and •O₂⁻ played important roles in photodegradation process. At last, a possible photocatalytic oxidation pathways of toluene was proposed based on the results of GC–MS. The Ag/AgBr/ZnFe₂O₄ composites showed potential application for efficient removal of organic pollutant.     

Novel,Facile and Swift Technique for Synthesis of CeO<Subscript>2</Subscript> Nanocubes Immobilized on Zeolite for Removal of CR and MO Dye

CeO₂/zeolite nanocomposite was successfully prepared by the mixing-calcination method. The structural characteristics of photocatalyst were investigated by XRD, SEM, TEM and EDX. Photocatalytic degradation experiments were carried out with varying amounts of the CeO₂/zeolite, the ratio of 3:1 (CeO₂/zeolite) was exhibited excellent photocatalytic activity towards dye degradation. Synergistic effect of CeO₂/zeolite played a key role in photocatalytic degradation. The main reactive oxygen species was determined by trapping experiments. Additionally, the recyclability was tested up to the fourth cycle. The CeO₂/zeolite nanocomposite is a promising photocatalyst for removing trace and unprocessed organic contaminants in the industrial dye waste water treatment. The efficiency of CeO₂/zeolite nanocomposite offers a potential economical route to degrade organic contaminants and recovering photocatalyst simultaneously.     

Silver ferrite–graphene nanocomposite and its good photocatalytic performance in air and visible light for organic dye removal

Silver ferrite–graphene (AgFeO₂‐G) as a nanocomposite photocatalyst shows potent visible‐light photocatalytic activity for the degradation of organic contaminants, and generates the strong oxidants hydroxyl radical (^•OH) and superoxide anion radical (O₂^•−) via photoelectrochemical decomposition of H₂O and O₂ in the presence of air and visible light irradiation. The photogenerated electrons of AgFeO₂ can transfer easily from the conduction band to the reduced graphene oxide, efficiently preventing the direct recombination of electrons and holes. As a matter of fact, AgFeO₂ has a low bandgap. Furthermore, AgFeO₂ nanoparticles themselves have a magnetic property, which makes them magnetically separable. The experimental results show that the graphene nanosheets in the nanocomposite catalyst are exfoliated and decorated homogeneously with AgFeO₂ nanoparticles. The photodegradation occurs in a short time (ca 40 min). Also, the photocatalytic activity of the nanocomposite does not show any clear loss after ten recycles of the degradation process.     

Photocatalytic Degradation of Oxytetracycline in Aqueous Solutions with TiO2 in Suspension and Prediction by Artificial Neural Networks

In this study, the photocatalytic degradation of oxytetracycline (OTC) in aqueous solutions has been studied under different conditions such as initial pollutant concentrations, amount of catalyst, and pH of the solution. Experimental results showed that photocatalysis was clearly the predominant process in the pollutant degradation, since OTC adsorption on the catalyst and photolysis are negligible. The optimal TiO₂ concentration for OTC degradation was found to be 1.0 g/L. The apparent rate constant decreased, and the initial degradation rate increased with increasing initial OTC concentration with the other parameters kept unchanged. Subsequently, data obtained from photocatalytic degradation were used for training the artificial neural networks (ANN). The Levenberg–Marquardt algorithm, log sigmoid function in the hidden layer, and the linear activation function in the output layer were used. The optimized ANN structure was four neurons at the input layer, eighteen neurons at the hidden layer, and one neuron at the output layer. The application of 18 hidden neurons allowed to obtain the best values for R² and the mean squared error, 0.99751 and 7.504e–04, respectively, showing the relevance of the training, and hence the network can be used for final prediction of photocatalytic degradation of OTC with suspended TiO₂.     

CdS-TiO2/累托石复合材料的制备及光催化性能

采用原位插层法制备了CdS-TiO2/累托石纳米复合材料. 以X射线粉未衍射、电镜、红外光谱、漫反射吸收光谱及液氮吸附比表面积测定等方法对其微结构和性能进行了分析与表征. 并以罗丹明B(RB)为模拟有机污染物, 对比研究了累托石、TiO2/累托石与CdS-TiO2/累托石的吸附和光催化性能. 结果表明, 与累托石相比, CdS-TiO2/累托石具有更复杂的多孔结构、更大的孔体积和比表面积以及更有效的光吸收能力; 该类复合材料表现出良好的吸附性能和光催化降解活性.     

Hydrogen production and photocatalytic activity of g-C3N4/Co-MOF (ZIF-67) nanocomposite under visible light irradiation

Herein, cobalt (Co)-based metal–organic zeolitic imidazole frameworks (ZIF-67) coupled with g-C₃N₄ nanosheets synthesized via a simple microwave irradiation method. SEM, TEM and HR-TEM results showed that ZIF-67 were uniformly dispersed on g-C₃N₄ surfaces and had a rhombic dodecahedron shape. The photocatalytic properties of g-C₃N₄/ZIF-67 nanocomposite were evaluated by photocatalytic dye degradation of crystal violet (CV), 4-chlorophenol (4-CP) and photocatalytic hydrogen (H₂) production. In presence of visible light illumination, the photocatalytic dye results showed that 95% CV degradation and 53% 4-CP degradation within 80 min. The H₂ production of the g-C₃N₄/ZIF-67 composite was 2084 μmol g⁻¹, which is 3.84 folds greater than that of bare g-C₃N₄ (541 μmol g⁻¹).     

Degradation of toluene gas at the surface of ZnO/SnO2 photocatalysts in a baffled bed reactor

To eliminate volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from contaminated air, a novel medium-scale baffled photocatalytic reactor was designed and fabricated, using immobilized ZnO/SnO₂ coupled oxide photocatalysts. Toluene was chosen as a representative pollutant of VOCs to investigate the degradation mechanism and the parameters affecting photocatalytic degradation efficiency. The preliminary experimental results indicate that the degradation efficiency of toluene increased with the increase of the light irradiation dosage, while it decreased with the increase of concentrations of toluene. The degradation efficiency increased rapidly with the increase of the relative humidity in a low humidity range from 0 to 35%, but decreased gradually in a high relative humidity (i.e., >35%). The optimum experimental conditions for toluene degradation is a toluene concentration of 106 mg m^?3, a relative humidity of 35%, and an illumination intensity of ca. 6 mW cm^?2 at the surface of ZnO/SnO₂ photocatalysts. The intermediates produced during the gaseous photocatalytic degradation process were identified using the GC–MS technique. Based on these identified intermediates, the photocatalytic mechanism of toluene into ZnO/SnO₂ coupled oxide catalyst was also deduced.     

Accelerating photocatalytic hydrogen evolution and pollutant degradation by coupling organic co-catalysts with TiO2

Accelerating the separation efficiency of photoexcited electron-hole pairs with the help of highly active co-catalysts has proven to be a promising approach for improving photocatalytic activity. Thus far, the most developed co-catalysts for semiconductor-based photocatalysis are inorganic materials; the employment of a specific organic molecule as a co-catalyst for photocatalytic hydrogen evolution and pollutant photodegradation is rare and still remains a challenging task. Herein, we report on the use of an organic molecule, oxamide (OA), as a novel co-catalyst to enhance electron-hole separation, photocatalytic H₂ evolution, and dye degradation over TiO₂ nanosheets. OA-modified TiO₂ samples were prepared by a wet chemical route and demonstrated improved light absorption in the visible-light region and more efficient charge transport. The photocatalytic performance of H₂ evolution from water splitting and rhodamine B (RhB) degradation for an optimal OA-modified TiO₂ photocatalyst reached 2.37 mmol g^-1 h^-1 and 1.43 × 10^?2 min^?1, respectively, which were 2.4 and 3.8 times higher than those of pristine TiO₂, respectively. A possible mechanism is proposed, in which the specific π-conjugated structure of OA is suggested to play a key role in the enhancement of the charge transfer and catalytic capability of TiO₂. This work may provide advanced insight into the development of a variety of metal-free organic molecules as functional co-catalysts for improved solar-to-fuel conversion and environmental remediation.     

利用AgVO3改性MoS2增强活性氧产生及其光催化性能的提高

随着全球工业化进程的发展,环境污染问题日益严重,已经成为21世纪影响人类生存与发展的重要问题.光催化氧化技术被认为是解决环境问题最有应用前景的技术之一,已经成为环境领域的研究热点.众所周知,二硫化钼(MoS2)可以被可见光激发产生电子-空穴对,但是由于其氧化还原电势并不高,抑制了氧分子活化的量子效率,且激发后的光生载流子容易复合,导致光催化效率不高.因此,迫切需要对MoS2光催化材料进行修饰与改性,采用提高光催化过程中活性氧(ROSs)的量来提高其光催化活性.银钒氧化物(AgVO3,Ag2V4O11,Ag3VO4和Ag4V2O7等)因其在锂电池、传感器和光催化剂领域的应用而引起了人们的关注.其中,AgVO3具有较窄的带隙和高度分散的价带,具有潜在的应用价值.本文采用水热法成功制备了AgVO3/MoS2复合光催化剂,并采用X射线粉末衍射、扫描电子显微、透射电子显微镜和紫外-可见漫反射光谱等表征技术研究了所制光催化剂的物相结构、样品形貌和光学性能.以四环素为研究对象,将其应用于AgVO3/MoS2复合光催化剂的降解实验.结果表明,随着AgVO3质量比从1.0 wt%增加到3.0 wt%,所得催化剂的光催化活性不断提高;当进一步增加AgVO3的质量时,复合催化剂的活性逐渐降低.这是由于过多的AgVO3的引入导致在光催化剂表面形成电子-空穴对复合中心,增加了载流子复合几率.因此,AgVO3/MoS2复合光催化剂中AgVO3的最佳质量比为3.0 wt%,其降解速率常数为0.0087 min–1,分别是MoS2(0.00509 min–1)和AgVO3(0.00495 min–1)的1.71和1.76倍.由于AgVO3改性后的MoS2具有优异的光催化性能,能促进O2的吸附/活化,加速MoS2表面生成H2O2的双电子氧还原反应,从而产生更多的ROSs.利用电子自旋共振光谱、POPHA荧光检测和自由基捕获实验相结合的方法来阐明ROSs的形成机理.同时,ROSs的产生会加速消耗AgOV3导带上的电子,为降解污染物留下更多的空穴.本文为表面催化工程促进ROSs生成的合理设计提供了新的思路,有望在环境治理中得到实际应用.     

Surface Modification of (001) Facets Dominated TiO2 with Ozone for Adsorption and Photocatalytic Degradation of Gaseous Toluene

This study investigated the positive effect of surface modification with ozone on the photocatalytic performance of anatase TiO₂ with dominated (001) facets for toluene degradation. The performance of photocatalyst was tested on a home-made volatile organic compounds degradation system. The ozone modi cation, toluene adsorption and degradation mechanism were established by a combination of various characterization methods, in situ diffuse reflectance infrared fourier transform spectroscopy, and density functional theory calculation. The surface modi cation with ozone can significantly enhance the photocatalytic degradation performance for toluene. The abundant unsaturated coordinated 5c-Ti sites on (001) facets act as the adsorption sites for ozone. The formed Ti-O bonds reacted with H₂O to generate a large amount of isolated Ti_5c-OH which act as the adsorption sites for toluene, and thus significantly increase the adsorption capacity for toluene. The outstanding photocatalytic performance of ozone-modified TiO₂ is due to its high adsorption ability for toluene and the abundant surface hydroxyl groups, which produce very reactive OH radicals under irradiation. Furthermore, the O₂ generated via ozone dissociation could combine with the photogenerated electrons to form superoxide radicals which are also conductive to the toluene degradation.     

Synergic effect of Type II ZnO/BiVO4 magnetic heterostructures for visible light-driven degradation of bisphenol A and methyl violet

Construction of an effective heterojunction for unimpeded flow of photogenerated charges and their prolonged separation is imperative for environmental photocatalysis. Herein, we have designed an efficient magnetic ZnO/BiVO₄ type-II heterostructure, which was employed for proficient degradation of persistent methyl violet dye with an efficiency of 97.6% in 90 min and a hazardous organic pollutant, namely, bisphenol A. UV-DRS and photoluminescence studies demonstrated that the fabricated nanocomposite exhibited effective light absorption and prolonged charge separation, thereby resulting in high photocatalytic efficacy under visible light irradiation. The efficacy of developed magnetic ZnO/BiVO₄ was also compared with pristine BiVO₄ and undoped magnetic ZnO, which indicated that the constructed heterostructure displayed approximately threefold and sixfold activity in contrast with bare BiVO₄ and undoped magnetic ZnO nanoparticles, respectively. Radical trapping studies, ESR analysis along with GC-MS analysis were conducted to elucidate the mechanistic pathway during the photodegradation process. This work provides a rational technical approach and research ideas for photocatalytic degradation of harmful organic pollutants in an environment-friendly manner by employing energy-efficient LEDs. Besides, good recyclability of catalyst makes it a promising candidate for large-scale applications.     

Synthesis of KIT-5 decorated by Bi2S3-Fe3O4 photocatalyst for degradation of parathion pesticide in aqueous media: Offering a degradation model and optimization using response surface methodology (RSM)

In this research, a novel KIT-5/Bi₂S₃-Fe₃O₄ nanocomposite was prepared. The structure and morphology properties of the nanocomposite were well characterized by XRD, FESEM-EDS-mapping, TEM, and N₂ adsorption–desorption. Benefiting from the visible light, the as-prepared KIT-5/Bi₂S₃-Fe₃O₄ nanocomposite exhibit significantly improved photocatalytic performance for the degradation of parathion. The optimum photocatalytic efficiency of KIT-5/Bi₂S₃-Fe₃O₄ nanocomposite was investigated with the central composite design using Design Expert software. The four critical variables affecting parathion degradation such as the concentration of parathion, pH, irradiation time, and amount of KIT-5/Bi₂S₃-Fe₃O₄ nanocatalyst. A polynomial function corresponding to degradation percent was obtained for the experimental data. The results showed that this catalyst has a good performance for the degradation of parathion.     

载钛羟基磷灰石光催化降解内分泌干扰物双酚A

对载钛羟基磷灰石（TiHAP）进行了透射电镜、X射线衍射、紫外-可见光谱和Zeta电位表征,并应用液相色谱-质谱技术对比了TiHAP和P25 TiO₂对环境内分泌干扰物双酚A（BPA）的吸附和光催化降解性能,探讨了富里酸和Fe³⁺对TiHAP薄膜光催化性能的影响。结果表明,TiHAP和TiO₂粉体对BPA的吸附符合Langmuir吸附等温方程,且前者吸附性能更大。TiHAP薄膜光催化降解BPA的性能优于TiO₂薄膜;富里酸和Fe³⁺对TiHAP和TiO₂薄膜光催化性能的影响趋势不同,从能带结构、电子转移和吸光性等角度分析了性能不同的原因。本结果可以为应用TiHAP降解环境内分泌干扰物提供依据。     

Preparation of SnO2–TiO2/Fly Ash Cenospheres and its Application in Phenol Degradation

SnO₂–TiO₂/fly ash cenospheres (FAC) were prepared via hydrothermal method and used as an active photocatalyst in a photocatalytic system. Scanning electron microscopy, X‐ray diffraction analysis, UV–Vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and N₂ adsorption–desorption measurements were used to determine the structure and optical property of SnO₂–TiO₂/FAC. Phenol was selected as the model substance for photocatalytic reactions to evaluate catalytic ability. Results showed that the degradation efficiency of phenol by SnO₂–TiO₂/FAC was 90.7% higher than that decomposed by TiO₂/FAC. Increased efficiency could be due to the enhanced synergistic effect of semiconductors and FAC could provide more adsorption sites for the pollutant in the photocatalytic reaction. Furthermore, SnO₂–TiO₂/FAC composites exhibited excellent photocatalytic stability in four reuse cycles. Radical‐trapping experiments further revealed the dominating functions of holes in the photocatalytic reaction.     

Enhanced and suppressed effects of ionic liquid on the photocatalytic activity of TiO2

The effects of a room temperature ionic liquid, 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium terafluoroborate ([Bmim]BF₄), on the photocatalytic performance of Degussa P25 TiO₂ were investigated. Also, the photocatalysis mechanism was systematically analyzed by conducting different reactive radical trapping experiments. The results showed that photogenerated electrons were the main reactive species involved in the photocatalytic degradation of methyl orange (MO), while ?OH radicals and photogenerated holes played an important role in the photocatalytic decomposition of rhodamine B (RhB). The addition of ionic liquid (IL) could slightly enhance the photocatalytic degradation rate of MO because adsorption of [Bmim]⁺ ions on the TiO₂ surface not only enhanced traping and transfer of photogenerated electrons, but also facilitated adsorption of negatively charged MO. On the contrary, IL suppressed the degradation rate of RhB because [Bmim]⁺ on the TiO₂ surface not only hindered the access of positively charged RhB to TiO₂, but also restricted the diffusion of positively charged holes to the TiO₂/solution interface.     

Visible‐light‐driven self‐cleaning SERS substrate of silver nanoparticles and graphene oxide decorated nitrogen‐doped titania nanotube array

Graphene oxide (GO) and silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) sequentially decorated nitrogen‐doped titania nanotube array (N‐TiO₂ NTA) had been designed as visible‐light‐driven self‐cleaning surface‐enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) substrate for a recyclable SERS detection application. N‐TiO₂ NTA was fabricated by anodic oxidation and then doping nitrogen treatment in ammonia atmosphere, acting as a visible‐light‐driven photocatalyst and supporting substrate. Ag/GO/N‐TiO₂ NTA was prepared by decorating GO monolayer through an impregnation process and then depositing Ag NPs through a polyol process on the surface of N‐TiO₂ NTA, acting as the collection of organic molecule and Raman enhancement. The SERS activity of Ag/GO/N‐TiO₂ NTA was evaluated using methyl blue as an organic probe molecule, revealing the analytical enhancement factor of 4.54 × 10⁴. Ag/GO/N‐TiO₂ NTA was applied as active SERS substrate to determine a low‐affinity organic pollutant of bisphenol A, revealing the detection limit of as low as 5 × 10^?7 m . Ag/GO/N‐TiO₂ NTA could also achieve self‐cleaning function for a recycling utilization through visible‐light‐driven photocatalytic degradation of the adsorbed organic molecules. Ag/GO/N‐TiO₂ NTA has been successfully reused for five times without an obvious decay in accuracy and sensitivity for organic molecule detection. The unique properties of this SERS substrate enable it to have a promising application for the sensitive and recyclable SERS detection of low‐affinity organic molecules. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Surface morphology and active sites of TiO<Subscript>2</Subscript> for photoassisted catalysis

The main aim of this work is to discriminate the closely related adsorption and catalytic degradation processes that occur during a photocatalytic reaction. Very high-surface-area TiO₂ and Pd-doped TiO₂ were synthesized by microwave-assisted hydrothermal synthesis and used for degradation of methylene blue as a model pollutant dye. Thorough structural, morphological, and surface analyses of the synthesized catalysts were conducted to investigate key material properties that influence adsorption and catalytic performance. The adsorption capacity of the catalysts was determined by fitting adsorption data using the Langmuir isotherm model, and the photocatalytic activity of the synthesized samples was evaluated by periodically measuring the concentration of methylene blue as it was photocatalytically degraded under ultraviolet (UV) light. The results indicated that noble-metal incorporation compromised adsorption but favored catalytic performance.     

Photodegradation of Rhodamine B on Sulfur Doped ZnO/TiO2 Nanocomposite Photocatalyst under Visible-light Irradiation

Sulfur doped ZnO/TiO₂ nanocomposite photocatalysts were synthesized by a facile sol‐gel method. The structure and properties of catalysts were characterized by X‐ray diffraction (XRD), X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), UV‐vis diffusive reflectance spectroscopy (DRS) and N₂ desorption‐adsorption isotherm. The XRD study showed that TiO₂ was anatase phase and there was no obvious difference in crystal composition of various S‐ZnO/TiO₂. The XPS study showed that the Zn element exists as ZnO and S atoms form SO^2?₄. The prepared samples had mesoporosity revealed by N₂ desorption‐adsorption isotherm result. The degradation of Rhodamine B dye under visible light irradiation was chosen as probe reaction to evaluate the photocatalytic activity of the ZnO/TiO₂ nanocomposite. The commercial TiO₂ photocatalyst (Degussa P25) was taken as standard photocatalyst to contrast the prepared different photocatalyst in current work. The improvement of the photocatalytic activity of S‐ZnO/TiO₂ composite photocatalyst can be attributed to the suitable energetic positions between ZnO and TiO₂, the acidity site caused by sulfur doping and the enlargement of the specific area. S‐3.0ZnO/TiO₂ exhibited the highest photocatalytic activity under visible light irradiation after Zn amount was optimized, which was 2.6 times higher than P25.     

MnFe2O4 Nanocrystals Wrapped in a Porous Organic Polymer: A Designed Architecture for Water‐Splitting Photocatalysis

A novel MnFe₂O₄–porous organic polymer (POP) nanocomposite was synthesized by a facile hydrothermal method and using the highly cross‐linked N‐rich benzene–benzylamine POP. The nanocomposite presented highly efficient photocatalytic performance in the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) from pure water without addition of any sacrificial agent under one AM 1.5 G sunlight illumination. A photocatalytic activity of 6.12 mmol h^?1 g^?1 was achieved in the absence of any noble metal cocatalyst, which is the highest H₂ production rate reported for nonprecious metal catalysts. The photocatalytic performance of MnFe₂O₄‐POP could be attributed to the intrinsic synergistic effects of manganese ferrite (MnFe₂O₄) nanoclusters interacting with the nitrogen dopant POP with a unique mesoporous nanoarchitecture and spatially confined growth of MnFe₂O₄ in the interconnected POP network, leading to high visible‐light absorption with fast electron transport.     

Microwave‐Hydrothermal Preparation and Visible‐Light Photoactivity of Plasmonic Photocatalyst Ag‐TiO2 Nanocomposite Hollow Spheres

Visible‐light‐driven plasmonic photocatalyst Ag‐TiO₂ nanocomposite hollow spheres are prepared by a template‐free chemically‐induced self‐transformation strategy under microwave‐hydrothermal conditions, followed by a photochemical reduction process under xenon lamp irradiation. The prepared samples are characterized by using scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, X‐ray diffraction, N₂ adsorption‐desorption isotherms, X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy, UV/Vis and Raman spectroscopy. Production of ?OH radicals on the surface of visible‐light illuminated TiO₂ was detected by using a photoluminescence method with terephthalic acid as the probe molecule. The photocatalytic activity of as‐prepared samples was evaluated by photocatalytic decolorization of Rhodamine B (RhB) aqueous solution at ambient temperature under visible‐light irradiation. The results show that the surface plasmon absorption band of the silver nanoparticles supported on the TiO₂ hollow spheres was red shifted, and a strong surface enhanced Raman scattering effect for the Ag‐TiO₂ nanocomposite sample was observed. The prepared nanocomposite hollow spheres exhibits a highly visible‐light photocatalytic activity for photocatalytic degradation of RhB in water, and their photocatalytic activity is higher than that of pure TiO₂ and commercial Degussa P25 (P25) powders. Especially, the as‐prepared Ag‐TiO₂ nanocomposite hollow spheres at the nominal atomic ratio of silver to titanium ( R ) of 2 showed the highest photocatalytic activity, which exceeds that of P25 by a factor of more than 2.