We can't find the internet
Attempting to reconnect
Something went wrong!
Hang in there while we get back on track
Polyethylene terephthalate pre-protected and iron, oxygen co-doped carbon nitride for enhanced photocatalytic degradation of organic pollutants.
AI summary Read the abstract
Researchers synthesized a carbon nitride photocatalyst using waste PET plastic as a protective scaffold for iron and oxygen co-doping, producing a material that degraded organic pollutants 8.3 times faster than unmodified carbon nitride within 40 minutes, while remaining effective in complex real-water matrices.
Water pollution has become an urgent issue for the healthy and sustainable development of human society. In this study, a highly active catalyst (10Fe@PET/CN) was synthesized using polyethylene terephthalate (PET) pre-protection combined with iron (Fe), oxygen (O) co-doping strategies. The introduction of PET effectively inhibited the oxidation and agglomeration of Fe atoms. Co-doping O atoms with Fe altered the morphology and structure of carbon nitride (CN), optimizing the energy band structure of 10Fe@PET/CN and introducing nitrogen vacancies (V). These modifications broadened the visible light response range of the 10Fe@PET/CN and enhanced the separation efficiency of photogenerated carriers. The transfer of electrons from the vicinity of nitrogen (N) and O atoms to the Fe atoms facilitated efficient electron migration, which in turn activated surface reactive oxygen species (·O). The 10Fe@PET/CN photocatalyst demonstrated remarkable efficiency in degrading organic pollutants within 40 min. Specifically, the degradation rate of 2-Mercaptobenzothiazole (MBT) was 8.31 times higher compared to pristine CN, with a 59.35% increase in removal efficiency. Finally, the performance of 10Fe@PET/CN was minimally affected by complex real water bodies and real-world waste plastics doping, indicating its robustness and practical applicability. This study not only advances the development of CN-based materials for efficient water pollution remediation but also addresses the pressing issue of plastic pollution. By transforming waste PET into a highly active photocatalyst, this approach offers sustainable and dual-purpose solutions to environmental challenges.
More Papers Like This
Preparation of heterojunction C3N4/WO3 photocatalyst for degradation of microplastics in water
AI summary Read the abstract
Researchers synthesized a carbon nitride/tungsten oxide heterojunction photocatalyst that effectively degrades PET microplastics in water while simultaneously generating hydrogen, offering a dual-benefit approach to addressing plastic pollution through photocatalysis.
Research progress on photocatalytic degradation of microplastics by graphitic carbon nitride
AI summary Read the abstract
This review systematically examined graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) as a photocatalytic tool for degrading microplastics, identifying hydroxyl radicals, holes, and superoxide radicals as the key reactive species and showing that pH, light intensity, and MP morphology significantly affect degradation efficiency. While still at laboratory scale, photocatalytic degradation offers a chemical pathway to break down persistent microplastics in water—an important complement to physical filtration approaches.
Selective Plastic Photo Upcycling to Acetic Acid via Coupled Oxidation and CO2 Reduction Over an S-Scheme g-C3N4/Fe2O3 Heterojunction.
AI summary Read the abstract
Researchers synthesized a sulfur-doped graphitic carbon nitride/iron oxide S-scheme heterojunction photocatalyst that converts polyethylene, polystyrene, and PET plastics into acetic acid under simulated sunlight, achieving up to 77% polyethylene conversion by sequentially photo-oxidizing the polymer to CO and then reducing CO to acetate via paired electron and hole reactions.
Low Environmental Impact Remediation of Microplastics: Visible-Light Photocatalytic Degradation of PET Microplastics Using Bio-Inspired C,N-TiO2/SiO2 Photocatalysts
AI summary Read the abstract
Researchers developed bio-inspired carbon and nitrogen co-doped TiO2/SiO2 photocatalysts capable of degrading PET microplastics under visible light, offering a low-energy alternative to UV-based photocatalysis for remediating microplastic contamination in aquatic environments.
Efficient Photocatalytic H2O2 Production Ability of a Novel Graphitic Carbon Nitride/Carbon Composites under Visible Light
AI summary Read the abstract
Researchers developed a novel graphitic carbon nitride/carbon composite synthesized from microplastics and melamine that achieves high-rate photocatalytic hydrogen peroxide production under visible light, demonstrating a way to upcycle plastic waste into useful photocatalysts.
Research digests by email
When a large batch of papers lands in the Atlas, we read through it and send a short write-up of what stood out.