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Efficient Photocatalytic Degradation of the Persistent PET Fiber-Based Microplastics over Pt Nanoparticles Decorated N-Doped TiO2 Nanoflowers
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A photocatalytic approach using platinum-decorated nitrogen-doped TiO2 nanoflowers achieved roughly 29% weight loss in PET fiber microplastics following hydrothermal pretreatment, outperforming untreated samples by about 8-fold. This chemical degradation strategy provides a promising pathway for breaking down one of the most abundant synthetic microplastic types found in textile wastewater and urban sewage.
Fiber-based microplastics (FMPs) are highly persistent and ubiquitously exist in the wastewater of textile industry and urban sewage. It remains challenging to completely remove such newly emerged organic pollutants by the predominant physical techniques. In this work, we investigated a photocatalytic degradation catalyzed by TiO2 catalyst to demonstrate the feasibility of implementing efficient chemical protocol to fast degrading polyethylene terephthalate (PET)-FMPs (a major FMP type existing in environment). The result shows that a hydrothermal pretreatment (180 °C/12 h) is necessary to induce the initial rough appearance and molecular weight reduction. With the comprehensive action of the nano-flower shaped N doped-TiO2 catalyst (Pt@N-TiO2-1.5%) on the relatively low molecular weight intermediates, an approximate 29% weight loss was induced on the pretreated PET-FMPs, which is about 8 times superior to the untreated sample. This work not only achieves a superior degradation effect of PET-FMPs, but also provides a new inspiration for the proposal of reduction strategies in the field of environmental remediation in the future.
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This review assessed titanium dioxide (TiO2) photocatalysis as a method for degrading macro- and microplastics, finding that UV-activated TiO2 can break polymer chains through reactive oxygen species under controlled conditions. Scalable photocatalytic degradation is a compelling remediation strategy because it can destroy microplastics rather than relocate them, potentially reducing the volume of particles available for human ingestion and environmental accumulation.
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Researchers developed a silver-doped titanium dioxide photocatalyst that can break down polyamide 66 microplastics under UV light, revealing the degradation pathway and suggesting that photocatalysis could be a viable approach for treating certain plastic pollutants in water.
Photocatalytic-Driven Self-Degradation of Polyester Microplastics Under Solar Light
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"Researchers synthesized a polyester fiber modified with a g-C3N4/TiO2 photocatalyst that can self-degrade under solar illumination, achieving near-complete breakdown into CO2 and water after 400 hours of light exposure. Designing plastics that decompose under sunlight rather than fragmenting into persistent microplastics offers a proactive materials-level strategy to reduce the volume of synthetic polymer pollution entering ecosystems."
Evaluation of Microplastic Degradation Using Titanium Dioxide Photocatalyst in Water
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Researchers tested UV light and titanium dioxide photocatalysis to break down microplastic fibers in water, achieving a 97% reduction in mass within 48 hours under optimized conditions, suggesting this approach could be a viable treatment technology for wastewater facilities.
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