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Photocatalysis for Energy Transformation Reactions and Wastewater Treatment

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A special issue of Molecules (ISSN 1420-3049). This special issue belongs to the section "Photochemistry".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 October 2024 | Viewed by 3407

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Special Issue Editor

Dr. Lagnamayee Mohapatra

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Guest Editor

Quantum System Engeerig Department, Jeonbuk National University, Jeonju, Jeollabuk-do, Republic of Korea
Interests: heterogeneous catalysis; nano-materials; water splitting

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Photocatalysis is an advanced technique with several applications, such as wastewater and air treatment, solar energy conversion, photo-sensible sensors, organic and inorganic synthesis, etc.

This Special Issue on "Photocatalysis for Energy Transformation Reactions and Wastewater Treatment" seeks high-quality research articles, as well as review articles, focusing on the latest advances in photocatalytic processes and their application in environmental sciences and in a series of energy transformation reactions, providing essential information for deep research in the area of clean environment and green energy production.

Dr. Lagnamayee Mohapatra
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Molecules is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

novel photocatalysts
photocatalytic degradation
water splitting
water and wastewater treatment
pollutants photocatalytic removal
pollutant abatement
energy conversion

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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20 pages, 3524 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Hydrothermally Synthesized ZnCr- and NiCr-Layered Double Hydroxides as Hydrogen Evolution Photocatalysts

by Sergei A. Kurnosenko, Oleg I. Silyukov, Ivan A. Rodionov, Anna S. Baeva, Andrei A. Burov, Alina V. Kulagina, Silvestr S. Novikov and Irina A. Zvereva

Molecules 2024, 29(9), 2108; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules29092108 - 2 May 2024

Viewed by 408

Abstract

The layered double hydroxides (LDHs) of transition metals are of great interest as building blocks for the creation of composite photocatalytic materials for hydrogen production, environmental remediation and other applications. However, the synthesis of most LDHs is reported only by the conventional coprecipitation method, which makes it difficult to control the catalyst’s crystallinity. In the present study, ZnCr- and NiCr-LDHs have been successfully prepared using a facile hydrothermal approach. Varying the hydrothermal synthesis conditions allowed us to obtain target products with a controllable crystallite size in the range of 2–26 nm and a specific surface area of 45–83 m²∙g⁻¹. The LDHs synthesized were investigated as photocatalysts of hydrogen generation from aqueous methanol. It was revealed that the photocatalytic activity of ZnCr-LDH samples grows monotonically with the increase in their average crystallite size, while that of NiCr-LDH ones reaches a maximum with intermediate-sized crystallites and then decreases due to the specific surface area reduction. The concentration dependence of the hydrogen evolution activity is generally consistent with the standard Langmuir–Hinshelwood model for heterogeneous catalysis. At a methanol content of 50 mol. %, the rate of hydrogen generation over ZnCr- and NiCr-LDHs reaches 88 and 41 μmol∙h⁻¹∙g⁻¹, respectively. The hydrothermally synthesized LDHs with enhanced crystallinity may be of interest for further fabrication of their nanosheets being promising components of new composite photocatalysts. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Photocatalysis for Energy Transformation Reactions and Wastewater Treatment)

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18 pages, 5254 KiB

Open AccessArticle

S-Scheme 2D/2D Heterojunction of ZnTiO₃ Nanosheets/Bi₂WO₆ Nanosheets with Enhanced Photoelectrocatalytic Activity for Phenol Wastewater under Visible Light

by Cheng Zuo, Xishi Tai, Zaiyong Jiang, Meifang Liu, Jinhe Jiang, Qian Su and Xueyuan Yan

Molecules 2023, 28(8), 3495; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules28083495 - 15 Apr 2023

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 1147

Abstract

The pollution of phenol wastewater is becoming worse. In this paper, a 2D/2D nanosheet-like ZnTiO₃/Bi₂WO₆ S-Scheme heterojunction was synthesized for the first time through a two-step calcination method and a hydrothermal method. In order to improve the separation efficiency of photogenerated carriers, the S-Scheme heterojunction charge-transfer path was designed and constructed, the photoelectrocatalytic effect of the applied electric field was utilized, and the photoelectric coupling catalytic degradation performance was greatly enhanced. When the applied voltage was +0.5 V, the ZnTiO₃/Bi₂WO₆ molar ratio of 1.5:1 had highest degradation rate under visible light: the degradation rate was 93%, and the kinetic rate was 3.6 times higher than that of pure Bi₂WO₆. Moreover, the stability of the composite photoelectrocatalyst was excellent: the photoelectrocatalytic degradation rate of the photoelectrocatalyst remained above 90% after five cycles. In addition, through electrochemical analysis, XRD, XPS, TEM, radical trapping experiments, and valence band spectroscopy, we found that the S-scheme heterojunction was constructed between the two semiconductors, which effectively retained the redox ability of the two semiconductors. This provides new insights for the construction of a two-component direct S-scheme heterojunction as well as a feasible new solution for the treatment of phenol wastewater pollution. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Photocatalysis for Energy Transformation Reactions and Wastewater Treatment)

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Review

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17 pages, 2149 KiB

Open AccessReview

Advances in the Application of Bi-Based Compounds in Photocatalytic Reduction of CO₂

by Cheng Zuo, Qian Su and Zaiyong Jiang

Molecules 2023, 28(10), 3982; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules28103982 - 9 May 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1391

Abstract

Bi-based semiconductor materials have special layered structure and appropriate band gap, which endow them with excellent visible light response ability and stable photochemical characteristics. As a new type of environment-friendly photocatalyst, they have received extensive attention in the fields of environmental remediation and energy crisis resolution and have become a research hotspot in recent years. However, there are still some urgent issues that need to be addressed in the practical large-scale application of Bi-based photocatalysts, such as the high recombination rate of photogenerated carriers, limited response range to visible spectra, poor photocatalytic activity, and weak reduction ability. In this paper, the reaction conditions and mechanism of photocatalytic reduction of CO₂ and the typical characteristics of Bi-based semiconductor materials are introduced. On this basis, the research progress and application results of Bi-based photocatalysts in the field of reducing CO₂, including vacancy introduction, morphological control, heterojunction construction, and co-catalyst loading, are emphasized. Finally, the future prospects of Bi-based photocatalysts are prospected, and it is pointed out that future research directions should be focused on improving the selectivity and stability of catalysts, deeply exploring reaction mechanisms, and meeting industrial production requirements. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Photocatalysis for Energy Transformation Reactions and Wastewater Treatment)

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