Nanomaterials have attracted attention for application in photocatalytic hydrogen production because of their beneficial properties such as high specific surface area, attractive morphology, and high light absorption. Furthermore, hydrogen is a clean and green source of energy that may help to resolve the existing energy crisis and increasing environmental pollution caused by the consumption of fossil fuels. Among various hydrogen production methods, photocatalytic water splitting is most significant because it utilizes solar light, a freely available energy source throughout the world, activated via semiconductor nanomaterial catalysts. Various types of photocatalysts are developed for this purpose, including carbon-based and transition-metal-based photocatalysts, and each has its advantages and disadvantages. The present review highlights the basic principle of water splitting and various techniques such as the thermochemical process, electrocatalytic process, and direct solar water splitting to enhance hydrogen production. Moreover, modification strategies such as band gap engineering, semiconductor alloys, and multiphoton photocatalysts have been reviewed. Furthermore, the Z- and S-schemes of heterojunction photocatalysts for water splitting were also reviewed. Ultimately, the strategies for developing efficient, practical, highly efficient, and novel visible-light-harvesting photocatalysts will be discussed, in addition to the challenges that are involved. This review can provide researchers with a reference for the current state of affairs, and may motivate them to develop new materials for hydrogen generation.
To eliminate imidacloprid insecticide from wastewater, nanocalcite was grafted onto the surface of pretreated polyester fabric. The process of seeding was followed by the low temperature hydrothermal method for the growth of nanocalcite for the functionalization of fabric. The goal of this study was to improve the hydrophilicity of the nanocalcite photocatalyst that had been grafted onto the surface of polyester fabric (PF) using acidic and basic prewetting techniques. The morphological characteristics, crystalline nature, surface charge density, functional groups of surface-modified nanocalcite @ PF were determined via SEM, XRD, FTIR, and Zeta potential (ZP), respectively. Characterization results critically disclosed surface roughness due to excessive induction of hydroxyl groups, rhombohedral crystal structure, and high charge density (0.721 mS/cm). Moreover, contact angle of nanocalcite @ PF was calculated to be 137.54° while after acidic and basic prewetting, it was reduced to 87.17° and 48.19°. Similarly, bandgap of the as fabricated nanocalcite was found to be 3.5 eV, while basic prewetted PF showed a reduction in band gap (2.9 eV). The solar photocatalytic mineralization of imidacloprid as a probe pollutant was used to assess the improvement in photocatalytic activity of nanocalcite @ PF after prewetting. Response surface methodology was used to statistically optimize the solar exposure time, concentration of the oxidant, and initial pH of the reaction mixture. Maximum solar photocatalytic degradation of the imidacloprid was achieved by basic prewetted nanocalcite @ PF (up to 91.49%), which was superior to acidic prewetted fabric and as-fabricated nanocalcite @ PF. Furthermore, HPLC and FTIR findings further indicated that imidacloprid was decomposed vastly to harmless species by basic prewetted nanocalcite @ PF.
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