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Advances in Photocatalyst Materials and Green Chemistry
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Advances in Photocatalyst Materials and Green Chemistry

A special issue of Materials (ISSN 1996-1944). This special issue belongs to the section "Catalytic Materials".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 June 2025 | Viewed by 3826

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Marta Prześniak-Welenc

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute of Nanotechnology and Materials Engineering, Gdansk University of Technology, Narutowicza 11/12, 80-233 Gdansk, Poland
Interests: transition metal complexes; reduced graphene oxide; batteries; cathode materials; photocatalysis; sol–-gel synthesis; thermal analysis
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The global challenges of environmental pollution and energy scarcity have led to significant attention toward innovative solutions. This Special Issue aims to address these issues by focusing on the intersection of two critical fields: photocatalysis technology and green chemistry. Photocatalysis, with its ability to convert solar energy into valuable fuels and chemicals while mitigating organic pollutants, stands out as a promising approach to combat global energy shortages and environmental pollution. This call for papers is extended to researchers worldwide who are actively contributing to the field of photocatalysis, particularly those working on advanced photocatalytic materials. These materials play a pivotal role in various applications such as water splitting, CO2 reduction, ammonia synthesis, H2O2 synthesis, pollutant degradation, and organic synthesis.

Green chemistry, as an overarching philosophy, complements this initiative by emphasizing the design of chemical products and processes that prioritize sustainability. It not only prevents pollution at the molecular level but also spans across all facets of a chemical product's life cycle, from design to disposal. By applying innovative scientific solutions, green chemistry results in a source reduction, effectively preventing the generation of pollution. Moreover, it significantly reduces the negative impacts of chemical products and processes on both human health and the environment, emphasizing the intrinsic safety of the materials used in photocatalytic applications.

Dr. Marta Prześniak-Welenc
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. Materials 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 2600 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

  • sustainable energy
  • green catalysts
  • environmental remediation
  • solar-driven catalysis
  • eco-friendly materials
  • carbon-neutral processes
  • clean energy production
  • catalyst design
  • sustainable synthesis

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

26 pages, 7009 KiB  
Article
Synergistic Removal of Diclofenac via Adsorption and Photocatalysis Using a Molecularly Imprinted Core–Shell Photocatalyst
by Ivana Gabelica, Floren Radovanović-Perić, Gordana Matijašić, Kristina Tolić Čop, Lidija Ćurković and Dragana Mutavdžić Pavlović
Materials 2025, 18(10), 2300; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma18102300 - 15 May 2025
Viewed by 313
Abstract
In this work, a newly developed magnetic molecularly imprinted Fe3O4/SiO2/TiO2/MIP photocatalyst with diclofenac (DIC) as the template was prepared by microwave-assisted synthesis. The molecularly imprinted TiO2 layer has specific cavities designed for the DIC [...] Read more.
In this work, a newly developed magnetic molecularly imprinted Fe3O4/SiO2/TiO2/MIP photocatalyst with diclofenac (DIC) as the template was prepared by microwave-assisted synthesis. The molecularly imprinted TiO2 layer has specific cavities designed for the DIC target molecule (imprint), resulting in a synergistic effect of extraction by adsorption and photocatalysis. For reference, non-imprinted magnetic nanoparticles (Fe3O4/SiO2/TiO2) were prepared using the same procedure. The obtained particles were characterized by X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), SEM-EDX, vibrating-sample magnetometry (VSM) and diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS). Specific surface area, pore volume and pore size distribution were evaluated using Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) adsorption–desorption isotherms. The synergistic effect of adsorption and photocatalysis as well as the kinetics and mechanism of DIC degradation using Fe3O4/SiO2/TiO2/MIP and Fe3O4/SiO2/TiO2 were determined and analysed. The adsorption efficiency of Fe3O4/SiO2/TiO2/MIP for DIC (10 mg dm−3) was around 86% after 60 min. The DIC (10 mg dm−3) removal efficiency of Fe3O4/SiO2/TiO2/MIP was around 80% after 30 min adsorption and 120 min of reaction under both UV-A- and solar-simulated light irradiation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Photocatalyst Materials and Green Chemistry)
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19 pages, 3957 KiB  
Article
Preparation and Hydrogen Production Application of Core–Shell Heterojunction Photocatalyst (PbS/ZnO)@CuS
by Ming-Huan Chiu and Wein-Duo Yang
Materials 2025, 18(1), 5; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma18010005 - 24 Dec 2024
Viewed by 762
Abstract
This study employed a hydrothermal method to coat CuS onto PbS quantum dots loaded with ZnO, resulting in a core–shell-structured (PbS/ZnO)@CuS hetero-structured photocatalyst. The sulfide coating enhanced the photocatalyst’s absorption in the near-infrared to visible light range and effectively reduced electron–hole (h+ [...] Read more.
This study employed a hydrothermal method to coat CuS onto PbS quantum dots loaded with ZnO, resulting in a core–shell-structured (PbS/ZnO)@CuS hetero-structured photocatalyst. The sulfide coating enhanced the photocatalyst’s absorption in the near-infrared to visible light range and effectively reduced electron–hole (h+) pair recombination during photocatalytic processes. Electron microscopy analysis confirmed the successful synthesis of this core–shell structure using polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP); however, the spatial hindrance effect of PVP led to a disordered arrangement of the CuS lattice, facilitating electron–hole recombination. Comprehensive analyses using transmission electron microscopy (TEM), photoluminescence (PL), and Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) methods revealed that the (PbS/ZnO)@CuS photocatalyst synthesized at a hydrothermal temperature of 170 °C exhibited optimal hydrogen production efficiency. After conducting a photocatalytic reaction for 5 h in a mixed aqueous solution containing 0.25 M Na2S + Na2SO3 as a sacrificial agent, a hydrogen production rate of 3473 μmol·g−1·h−1 was achieved. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Photocatalyst Materials and Green Chemistry)
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23 pages, 9728 KiB  
Article
Investigation of the Photocatalytic Activity of Copper-Modified Commercial Titania (P25) in the Process of Carbon Dioxide Photoreduction
by Konrad Sebastian Sobczuk, Iwona Pełech, Daniel Sibera, Piotr Staciwa, Agnieszka Wanag, Ewa Ekiert, Joanna Kapica-Kozar, Katarzyna Ćmielewska, Ewelina Kusiak-Nejman, Antoni Waldemar Morawski and Urszula Narkiewicz
Materials 2024, 17(24), 6139; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma17246139 - 15 Dec 2024
Viewed by 852
Abstract
The photocatalytic reduction of CO2 to useful products is an area of active research because it shows a potential to be an efficient tool for mitigating climate change. This work investigated the modification of titania with copper(II) nitrate and its impact on [...] Read more.
The photocatalytic reduction of CO2 to useful products is an area of active research because it shows a potential to be an efficient tool for mitigating climate change. This work investigated the modification of titania with copper(II) nitrate and its impact on improving the CO2 reduction efficiency in a gas-phase batch photoreactor under UV–Vis irradiation. The investigated photocatalysts were prepared by treating P25-copper(II) nitrate suspensions (with various Cu2+ concentrations), alkalized with ammonia water, in a microwave-assisted solvothermal reactor. The titania-based photocatalysts were characterized by SEM, EDS, ICP-OES, XRD and UV-Vis/DR methods. Textural properties were measured by the low-temperature nitrogen adsorption/desorption studies at 77 K. P25 photocatalysts modified with copper(II) nitrate used in the process of carbon dioxide reduction allowed for a higher efficiency both for the photocatalytic reduction of CO2 to CH4 and for the photocatalytic water decomposition to hydrogen as compared to a reference. Similarly, modified samples showed significantly higher selectivity towards methane in the CO2 conversion process than the unmodified sample (a change from 30% for a reference sample to 82% for the P25-R-Cu-0.1 sample after the 6 h process). It was found that smaller loadings of Cu are more beneficial for increasing the photocatalytic activity of a sample. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Photocatalyst Materials and Green Chemistry)
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14 pages, 8000 KiB  
Article
Enhanced Photocatalytic Activity of V2C MXene-Coupled ZnO Porous Nanosheets with Increased Surface Area and Effective Charge Transfer
by Weibing Zhou, Lilong Sun, Kang Li and Shouqin Tian
Materials 2024, 17(11), 2529; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma17112529 - 24 May 2024
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1254
Abstract
Photocatalysis performs excellently when degrading organic pollutants, but the photocatalytic degradation rate is not high for most photocatalysts due to their narrow sunlight adsorption range and high recombination rate of electron hole pairs. Herein, we use V2C-MXene with a wide sunlight [...] Read more.
Photocatalysis performs excellently when degrading organic pollutants, but the photocatalytic degradation rate is not high for most photocatalysts due to their narrow sunlight adsorption range and high recombination rate of electron hole pairs. Herein, we use V2C-MXene with a wide sunlight adsorption range to couple ZnO porous nanosheets and form ZnO/MXene hybrids using a facile electrostatic self-assembly method. The ZnO/MXene hybrids acquired demonstrated improved photochemical efficiency in breaking down methylene blue (MB) when contrasted with porous ZnO nanosheets. The degradation rate of MB reached 99.8% under UV irradiation for 120 min after the ZnO/MXene hybrid formation, while 38.6% was attained by the ZnO porous nanosheets. Moreover, photodegradation rate constants (k) were calculated as 3.05 × 10−3 and 5.42 × 10−2 min−1 for ZnO porous nanosheets and ZnO/MXene hybrids, respectively, indicating that the photodegradation performance was enhanced by 17.8 times after the modification of V2C. This was probably because the modification of V2C can increase the specific surface area to provide more sites for MB adsorption, widen the sunlight adsorption range to produce good photothermal effect, and facilitate the transfer of photogenerated carriers in ZnO to promote the reaction of more photogenerated carriers with MB. Hence, this work offers a simple approach to creating effective photocatalysts for breaking down organic contaminants. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Photocatalyst Materials and Green Chemistry)
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