Photocatalytic Degradation of Organic and Inorganic Pollutants to Harmless End Products: Assessment of Practical Application Potential for Water and Air Cleaning

Abstract

It is well-documented that large-scale pollution generated by human activity has a dramatic impact on ecosystems. In this context, removing harmful chemicals via photocatalysis has tremendous potential as a depollution method, utilizing freely available solar light and catalytic materials with low or negligible ecotoxicity. The main drawbacks, which aren’t often addressed in the available literature, are the formation of harmful intermediate products, low reaction rates, limited catalyst stability, and difficult catalyst recovery. In most cases, published works assess the efficiency of tested photocatalysts from pollutant degradation studies, whereas identifying and quantifying by-products is not often conducted. This review summarizes the recent advances reported for the photocatalytic removal of some organic (e.g., alcohols, carboxylic acids, volatile organic compounds, phenol) and inorganic (e.g., NO3−) contaminants. The efficiency of various UV- and visible-light active photocatalysts and the reaction degradation pathways were explained, emphasizing the main factors contributing to their mineralization. The reaction mechanisms, the identification and quantification of degradation intermediates, and the implication of reactive active species (ROS) were discussed and analyzed for each category of model target pollutant. Additionally, the actual challenges and future photocatalytic approaches to improve environmental remediation were presented.

Effect of copper doping on the photocatalytic performance of Ni2O3@PC membrane composites in norfloxacin degradation

“…It is a well-known fact that hydroxyl radicals (OHc), superoxide radicals (cO 2 − ) and holes (h + ) are the main reactive species responsible for the degradation of different types of antibiotics, including NOR. 68,69 To identify the reactive species responsible for the efficient degradation of NOR, additional experiments with quenchers (isopropyl alcohol, ethanol, EDTA-Na 2 p-benzoquinone) were carried out. 70 The photodegradation efficiency of the Cu/Ni 2 O 3 @PC composite in presence of different quenchers of specic reactive species is presented in Fig.…”

Kinetics of photocatalytic degradation of organic compounds: a mini-review and new approach

“…44 The rate constant k 1 in eqn ( 14) depends on reaction temperature and the chemical thermodynamic properties of subtracts. [45][46][47] However, several experimental parameters also affected the k 1 value. [48][49][50] Rytwo and Zelkind reported that heterogenous and homogenous photocatalysis could effectively degrade ooxacin when they studied the evaluation of kinetic pseudo-order in the TiO 2 -photocatalyzed degradation of ooxacin.…”

Green Synthesis of TiO2 Using Impatiens rothii Hook.f. Leaf Extract for Efficient Removal of Methylene Blue Dye

“…The tremendous environmental effects, such as climate change, water pollution, and depletion of natural resources caused by industrialization, are linked with an increasing socio-economic demand. The natural world is being severely contaminated by the uncontrolled discharge of many hazardous substances including liquid, semisolid, and solid wastes. , Nowadays, one of our world challenges is the opportunity to get pure water due to pollution. Among the causes of water contamination include energy byproducts, mining operations, insect sides and chemical fertilizers, radioactive wastes, infrastructural activities, and industrial effluents including dyes .…”