scholarly journals Superior Adsorption and Photocatalytic Degradation Capability of Mesoporous LaFeO3/g-C3N4 for Removal of Oxytetracycline

Catalysts ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 301 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ke Xu ◽  
Xiaosheng Yang ◽  
Luda Ruan ◽  
Shaolv Qi ◽  
Jianling Liu ◽  
...  

Mesoporous LaFeO3/g-C3N4 Z-scheme heterojunctions (LFC) were synthesized via the incorporation of LaFeO3 nanoparticles and porous g-C3N4 ultrathin nanosheets. The as prepared LFC were characterized by transmission electron microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, powder X-ray diffraction, Raman spectra and N2 adsorption analysis. The structural analysis indicated that the reheating process and the addition of NH4Cl in the thermal polymerization were the key factors to get porous g-C3N4 ultrathin nanosheets and to obtain high specific surface areas of LFC. It remarkably enhanced the adsorption capacity and photocatalytic degradation of LFC for removal of oxytetracycline (OTC). The effect of the mass percentage of LaFeO3 in LFC, pH and temperature on the OTC adsorption was investigated. The LaFeO3/g-C3N4 heterojunction with 2 wt % LaFeO3 (2-LFC) exhibited highest saturated adsorption capacity (101.67 mg g−1) and largest photocatalytic degradation rate constant (1.35 L g−1 min−1), which was about 9 and 5 times higher than that of bulk g-C3N4 (CN), respectively. This work provided a facile method to prepare mesoporous LaFeO3/g-C3N4 heterojunctions with especially well adsorption and photocatalytic activities for OTC, which can facilitate its practical applications in pollution control.

Toxins ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 105 ◽  
Author(s):  
Huiting Wang ◽  
Jin Mao ◽  
Zhaowei Zhang ◽  
Qi Zhang ◽  
Liangxiao Zhang ◽  
...  

Deoxynivalenol (DON) is a secondary metabolite produced by Fusarium, which is a trichothecene mycotoxin. As the main mycotoxin with high toxicity, wheat, barley, corn and their products are susceptible to contamination of DON. Due to the stability of this mycotoxin, traditional methods for DON reduction often require a strong oxidant, high temperature and high pressure with more energy consumption. Therefore, exploring green, efficient and environmentally friendly ways to degrade or reduce DON is a meaningful and challenging issue. Herein, a dendritic-like α-Fe2O3 was successfully prepared using a facile hydrothermal synthesis method at 160 °C, which was systematically characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). It was found that dendritic-like α-Fe2O3 showed superior activity for the photocatalytic degradation of DON in aqueous solution under visible light irradiation (λ > 420 nm) and 90.3% DON (initial concentration of 4.0 μg/mL) could be reduced in 2 h. Most of all, the main possible intermediate products were proposed through high performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS) after the photocatalytic treatment. This work not only provides a green and promising way to mitigate mycotoxin contamination but also may present useful information for future studies.


2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (23) ◽  
pp. 8529
Author(s):  
Junyi Wang ◽  
Tianlu Chen ◽  
Biao Xu ◽  
Yueqiu Chen

Porous rGO/SiO2 nanocomposites with a “core-shell” structure were prepared as an efficient adsorbent for the liquid-phase adsorption of cationic neutral red (NR) dye. The samples were characterized with powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), thermogravimetric analysis (TG), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Raman spectroscopy, and N2 and water vapor adsorption/desorption methods. The NR removal ability and kinetics of the adsorption process of SiO2 and the rGO/SiO2 nanocomposites were investigated at 298 K. The rGO/SiO2 nanocomposite SG 0.30 showed a superior adsorption of NR dye. In regard to NR at pH 5, we measured a superior adsorption capacity of 66.635 mg/g at an initial NR concentration of 50 mg/L. The experimental adsorption capacity of SG 0.30 was 3.791 times higher than that of SiO2. Then, we compared the results with similar materials used for NR removal. Moreover, the water adsorption sites provided by the nitrogen- and oxygen-containing groups might be one of the reasons for the increased adsorption of water vapor. The broad range of properties of the rGO/SiO2 nanocomposite, including its simple synthesis, ability to be mass prepared, and strong adsorption properties, makes it a truly novel adsorbent that can be industrially produced, and shows potential application in the treatment of wastewater-containing dyes.


2020 ◽  
Vol 16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lili Yang ◽  
Chuanguo Li ◽  
Wenjie Zhang

BACKGROUND: Photocatalytic oxidation of organic pollutants in the environment has been studied for more than half a century. Titanate has the activity on degradation of organic pollutants under UV light illumination. Template directed sol-gel method is capable of producing porous structure in titanate during high temperature thermal treatment. METHODS: The materials were characterized using X-ray powder diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, surface area and pore size analyses, UV-Visible spectrometry, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Photocatalytic activity of the CeTi2O6 material was evaluated through ofloxacin degradation. RESULTS: Brannerite structured CeTi2O6 was the major component in the samples, and the addition of CTAB caused a slight growth of CeTi2O6 crystals. Porous structure formed in the porous sample after the removal of CTAB template, and the surface area and pore volume were greatly enlarged. The first order reaction rate constant for photocatalytic degradation of ofloxacin was 9.60×10-3 min-1 on the nonporous CeTi2O6 sample, and it was as large as 2.44×10-2 min-1 on the porous CeTi2O6 sample. The addition of CTAB can influence the physico-chemical properties of the porous CeTi2O6, such as the improved activity on photocatalytic degradation of ofloxacin. CONCLUSION: The CeTi2O6 samples were composed of majority brannerite CeTi2O6, and CeTi2O6 crystallite sizes for the nonporous and porous samples were 38.1 and 43.2 nm. The burning up of CTAB during calcination produced abundant pores in the porous material. After 50 min of reaction, photocatalytic degradation efficiencies on the nonporous and porous CeTi2O6 samples were 38.1% and 70.5%.


2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (02) ◽  
pp. 1950014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wei Yang ◽  
Sheng Guo ◽  
Jinyi Chen ◽  
Abdul Naeem ◽  
Hussain Fida ◽  
...  

Iron-modified montmorillonite (Mt) composites with controlled interlayer spacing were successfully synthesized through Fenton-like process with the addition of different concentrations of Rhodamine B (RhB). The physicochemical properties of the resulting samples were characterized by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). It was worth noting that the adsorption efficiency of the composite for tetracycline hydrochloride (TC) increased with the increase of the RhB concentration during preparation. The maximum adsorption capacity of the as-prepared composite toward TC was 192.4[Formula: see text]mg/g, which was much higher than that of the Mt (144.9[Formula: see text]mg/g). Moreover, the as-prepared adsorbent showed high adsorption capacity of TC in a wide pH range of 3.0–9.0. The adsorption process followed the pseudo-second-order equation and the Langmuir isotherm model, suggesting the mono-layer chemisorption of the adsorption process. The present work may provide a new strategy for the design and fabrication of functional clay-based materials.


2019 ◽  
Vol 26 (01) ◽  
pp. 1850124 ◽  
Author(s):  
ZHIPING SUN ◽  
YAJUN ZHANG ◽  
JUNJUN HUANG

In this work, the effects of activated time on the structural properties of plated plant fiber nonwoven sheet were investigated systematically using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Results showed that there existed a saturated adsorption state on the surface of sheet in the PdCl2 solution. The adsorbed rate and saturated adsorption capacity increased with the increase of PdCl2 concentration. As a result, the deposited quantity and crystallization characteristics of plated nonwoven sheets were firstly enhanced and then unchanged with increase of activated time. The Pd-adsorbed capacity reached saturation point when the activated time was 16[Formula: see text]min. The maximum plated quantity was 0.02 and 0.028[Formula: see text]g/cm2 when the concentration of activating solution was 0.015 and 0.15[Formula: see text]g/L on the surface of sheet.


Catalysts ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (9) ◽  
pp. 1035
Author(s):  
Víctor Ruíz-Santoyo ◽  
Virginia F. Marañon-Ruiz ◽  
Rafael Romero-Toledo ◽  
Oscar Arturo González Vargas ◽  
Alejandro Pérez-Larios

The present research reports the synthesis of ZrO2-doped TiO2 photocatalysts at different ZrO2 contents (1, 3 and 5% wt.) synthesized by the sol–gel method. The samples were characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction, attenuated total reflectance-Fourier transform infrared, ultraviolet–visible, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and N2 adsorption–desorption analysis. The photocatalytic activity of the ZrO2-doped TiO2 was investigated against the dyes methyl orange and rhodamine B through mineralization studies. The ZrO2-doped TiO2 samples presented a semiglobular-ovoid agglomerate shape around 500–800 nm. The samples presented high crystallinity of the TiO2 anatase phase, XPS suggested the formation of Zr–O–Ti bonds and the samples were classified as mesoporous materials with slight changes in the optical features in comparison with pure TiO2. Our study shows that the ZrO2-doped TiO2 composites exhibited a higher photocatalytic activity than just utilizing the synthetized TiO2 and a commercial P25. The different degradation behaviors are attributed to differences in the textural properties, and to the different optical absorptions of the samples due to structural defects created by the level of doping of Zr4+ ions into the TiO2 lattice. Reaction kinetics parameters were calculated by the Langmuir–Hinshelwood model, and a third run cycle of the ZrO2-doped TiO2 at 1% wt. achieved a photocatalytic degradation of 78.1 and 75.5% for RhB and MO, respectively.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yan-Yan Dong ◽  
Ya-Hong Zhu ◽  
Ming-Guo Ma ◽  
Qi Liu ◽  
Wen-Qing He

AbstractIn the present work, Ag@AgCl-reinforced cellulose composites with enhanced antibacterial and photocatalytic degradation properties were successfully synthesized via oil bath heating method. During the process, zinc chloride (ZnCl2) solution was used as both Cl− resource to form AgCl and the solvent to dissolve cellulose. The samples were synthesized with different temperatures, times, and concentrations of ZnCl2 solution. The morphology, microstructure and phase of the as-prepared samples were analyzed with X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectrometry, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), photocatalytic activity studies and inhibition zone experiments. Results showed that dye solution could be completely degraded by the materials in 1 h, and higher concentrations of ZnCl2 solution favored for larger inhibition zones (higher to 10.8 mm). This synthetic strategy displayed here offers more possibilities to high value-added applications of cellulose.


Materials ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (11) ◽  
pp. 2824
Author(s):  
Hocine Merabet ◽  
Yannis De Luna ◽  
Khadiga Mohamed ◽  
Nasr Bensalah

Silicon and silicon nitride (Si3N4) are some of the most appealing candidates as anode materials for LIBs (Li-ion battery) due to their favorable characteristics: low cost, abundance of Si, and high theoretical capacity. However, these materials have their own set of challenges that need to be addressed for practical applications. A thin film consisting of silicon nitride-coated silicon on a copper current collector (Si3N4@Si@Cu) has been prepared in this work via RF magnetron sputtering (Radio Frequency magnetron sputtering). The anode material was characterized before and after cycling to assess the difference in appearance and composition using XRD (X-ray Powder Diffraction), XPS (X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy), SEM/EDX (Scanning Electron Microscopy/ Energy Dispersive X-Ray Analysis), and TEM (Transmission Electron Microscopy). The effect of the silicon nitride coating on the electrochemical performance of the anode material for LIBs was evaluated against Si@Cu film. It has been found that the Si3N4@Si@Cu anode achieved a higher capacity retention (90%) compared to Si@Cu (20%) after 50 cycles in a half-cell versus Li+/Li, indicating a significant improvement in electrochemical performance. In a full cell, the Si3N4@Si@Cu anode achieved excellent efficiency and acceptable specific capacities, which can be enhanced with further research.


Processes ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 589
Author(s):  
Khadijah Mohammedsaleh M Katubi ◽  
Norah Salem Alsaiari ◽  
Fatimah Mohammed Alzahrani ◽  
Saifeldin M. Siddeeg ◽  
Mohamed A. Tahoon

These days, environmental pollution, notably water pollution, has increasingly caused severe human health problems. The major water pollutants are heavy metals. MnFe2O4/GO nanocomposite was prepared in the current work via in situ method and tested to remove lead ion Pb2+ and neutral red (NR) dye from water. The prepared nanocomposite was characterized using different techniques, including X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, Raman spectra, and vibrating sample magnetometer. The prepared nanocomposite showed high adsorption capacity toward Pb2+ and NR dye removal according to Langmuir fitting indicating the monolayer homogeneous adsorption of pollutants over the adsorbent surface and can be separated easily with an external magnet. The effect of different factors, including contact time, pH, initial concentration, and adsorbent dose on the adsorption, were also studied. The increased concentration of pollutants led to increased adsorption capacity from 63 to 625 mg/g for Pb2+ ions and from 20 to 90 mg/g for NR dye. The increased adsorbent dose led to increased removal efficiency from 39% to 98.8% and from 63% to 94% for Pb2+ and NR dye, respectively. The optimum pH for the adsorption of both pollutants was found to be 6.0. The reusability of MnFe2O4/GO nanocomposite was studied for up to five cycles. The nanocomposite can keep its efficiency even after the studied cycles. So, the prepared magnetic nanocomposite is a promising material for water treatment.


2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 633-643
Author(s):  
Xiaopeng Qi ◽  
Junwei Chen ◽  
Qian Li ◽  
Hui Yang ◽  
Honghui Jiang ◽  
...  

Abstract There is an urgent need for an effective and long-lasting ceramic filter for point-of-use water treatment. In this study, silver-diatomite nanocomposite ceramic filters were developed by an easy and effective method. The ceramic filters have a three-dimensional interconnected pore structure and porosity of 50.85%. Characterizations of the silver-diatomite nanocomposite ceramic filters were performed using scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Silver nanoparticles were confirmed to be formed in situ in the ceramic filter. The highest silver concentration in water was 0.24 μg/L and 2.1 μg/L in short- and long-term experiments, indicating very low silver-release properties of silver-diatomite nanocomposite ceramic filter. The nanocomposite ceramics show strong bactericidal activity. When contact time with Escherichia coli (E. coli) and Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) of 105 colony forming units (CFU)/mL exceeded 3 h, the bactericidal rates of the four different silver content ceramics against E. coli and S. aureus were all 100%. Strong bactericidal effect against E. coli with initial concentration of 109 CFU/mL were also observed in ceramic newly obtained and ceramic immersed in water for 270 days, demonstrating its high stability. The silver-diatomite nanocomposite ceramic filters could be a promising candidate for point-of-use water treatment.


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