Photocatalytic Materials for Pollutant Removal by Degradation

A special issue of Separations (ISSN 2297-8739). This special issue belongs to the section "Environmental Separations".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 August 2024) | Viewed by 821

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Department of Industrial Engineering, University Salerno, Via Giovanni Paolo 2 132, I-84084 Fisciano, Salerno, Italy
Interests: photocatalysis for sustainable chemistry; photocatalytic processes for pollutants removal in wastewater
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Semiconductor materials with important physical-chemical properties have attracted interest for their application to water and air treatment. Photocatalytic processes have shown great potential in recent years as environmentally friendly and sustainable technologies. Nowadays, technical limitations related to photocatalytic processes persist, such as the high cost of the UV light source, the post-recovery of catalysts after water treatment, and the efficiency of the photocatalytic processes for the removal of new recalcitrant pollutants. To overcome these technical challenges, and especially to ensure the better utilization of sunlight, research efforts have focused on developing catalysts with a wider range of light absorption, and their incorporation into different supports (for example, photocatalytic polymer composite or membrane reactors could combine two treatments, photocatalysis and filtration, in a single unit in order to degrade different contaminants). At present, several methodical approaches for photocatalyst activation via visible light are being investigated. These methods include the modification of TiO2, the most popular photocatalyst, and other commercially available semiconductors (e.g., ZnO or CuO) by metal ions or non-metallic species, as well as the coupling of various semiconductors with macroscopic supports. The engineering design of semiconductor nanostructured materials can significantly improve the development of green, cost-effective, and efficient technologies for the removal of emerging contaminants.

Dr. Antonietta Mancuso
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • photocatalysis
  • water treatment
  • air treatment
  • emerging pollutants
  • semiconductor materials
  • visible light
  • photocatalytic degradation

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

12 pages, 1543 KiB  
Article
Photocatalytic Degradation of Levofloxacin and Inactivation of Enterococci Levofloxacin-Resistant Bacteria Using Pure Rare-Earth Oxides
by Lorenzo Saviano, Antonietta Mancuso, Alice Cardito, Olga Sacco, Vincenzo Vaiano, Maurizio Carotenuto, Giovanni Libralato and Giusy Lofrano
Separations 2024, 11(9), 272; https://doi.org/10.3390/separations11090272 - 18 Sep 2024
Viewed by 470
Abstract
In this study, La2O3 and CeO2 nanopowders were prepared using a simple and cost-effective precipitation method. Wide-angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD), UV-Visible reflectance diffuses (UV-Vis DRS), Raman spectroscopy, and specific surface area were used to characterize the photocatalysts, evidencing that [...] Read more.
In this study, La2O3 and CeO2 nanopowders were prepared using a simple and cost-effective precipitation method. Wide-angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD), UV-Visible reflectance diffuses (UV-Vis DRS), Raman spectroscopy, and specific surface area were used to characterize the photocatalysts, evidencing that the used preparation method was effective in the generation of crystalline CeO2 and La2O3. In particular, WAXD results showed that the average crystallite size of the achieved La2O3 and CeO2 samples were about 22 nm and 28 nm, respectively. The photocatalytic performances of the prepared catalysts were investigated in the degradation of levofloxacin (LEV) and the inactivation of a waterborne pathogen levofloxacin resistant (Enterococcus faecalis ATCC 29212) by using a photoreactor equipped with a solar simulator (SS). After 120 min, the CeO2 and La2O3 photocatalytic treatments allowed us to achieve between 75% and 83% of levofloxacin removal, respectively. A complete removal of 106 CFU/mL Enterococcus faecalis ATCC 29212 was achieved after 5 and 60 min of La2O3 and CeO2 photocatalytic processes, respectively. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Photocatalytic Materials for Pollutant Removal by Degradation)
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