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New Perspectives in Photocatalytic Water Treatment

A special issue of Water (ISSN 2073-4441). This special issue belongs to the section "Wastewater Treatment and Reuse".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 July 2021) | Viewed by 16633

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Department of Engineering and Applied Sciences, University of Bergamo, Bergamo, Italy
Interests: semiconductor photocatalysts; photocatalysis for environmental applications
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

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Guest Editor
Institute of Environmental Sciences, Bogazici University, Istanbul, Turkey
Interests: advanced oxidation processes; photocatalysis, TiO2 and non-TiO2 photocatalytic materials; applications for drinking water, natural organic matter removal, and inactivation of bacteria; photochemical reactions in natural waters
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Over the past 30 years, photocatalysis has been recognized for its potential in water treatment. In a photocatalytic transformation, the activation of a chemical reaction or its rate is changed when a semiconductor photocatalyst adsorbs photons (in the ultraviolet or visible radiation range) with an energy sufficiently high to generate excited electron-hole pairs. The excited state of the photocatalyst interacts with the contaminants in water, forming reaction intermediates, which can be harmless or harmful. In turn, the latter can be degraded into non-hazardous compounds. Considering the huge research efforts focused on TiO2 (and other photocatalytic materials) for the oxidative degradation of organic pollutants, it is surprising that, due to the low photoconversion efficiency, the industrial applications of water treatment of various photocatalytic materials and technologies are still very limited. This Special Issue will cover all relevant topics related to photocatalytic oxidative processes in water treatment, with a special emphasis on progress and investigations, which are required for improving their practical use. Articles presenting advances into photocatalytic processes or showing a correlation between the synthesis, structure, and performance of photocatalytic systems are welcome. On the basis of our experience, the following topics are particularly required: (i) water treatment and photocatalytic advanced oxidation processes; (ii) visible light active photocatalyst preparation, characterization, and applications,; and (iii) inactivation of microorganisms, kinetics, and mechanism.

Prof. Dr. Isabella Natali Sora
Prof. Dr. Miray Bekbolet
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • photocatalysis
  • preparation and characterization of novel photocatalysts
  • natural organic matter removal
  • inactivation of microorganisms

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Published Papers (6 papers)

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Editorial

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3 pages, 153 KiB  
Editorial
New Perspectives in Photocatalytic Water Treatment
by Isabella Natali Sora and Miray Bekbolet
Water 2021, 13(21), 3083; https://doi.org/10.3390/w13213083 - 3 Nov 2021
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1681
Abstract
This Special Issue, entitled “New Perspectives in Photocatalytic Water Treatment”, was planned to cover all relevant topics related to photo-initiated oxidative processes in water treatment, with a special emphasis on pollutant abatement and microorganism inactivation, which were required for improving their practical uses [...] Read more.
This Special Issue, entitled “New Perspectives in Photocatalytic Water Treatment”, was planned to cover all relevant topics related to photo-initiated oxidative processes in water treatment, with a special emphasis on pollutant abatement and microorganism inactivation, which were required for improving their practical uses [...] Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Perspectives in Photocatalytic Water Treatment)

Research

Jump to: Editorial

26 pages, 6586 KiB  
Article
Photocatalytic Bactericidal Performance of LaFeO3 under Solar Light in the Presence of Natural Organic Matter: Spectroscopic and Mechanistic Evaluation
by Nazmiye Cemre Birben, Ezgi Lale, Renato Pelosato, Nazli Turkten, Isabella Natali Sora and Miray Bekbolet
Water 2021, 13(19), 2785; https://doi.org/10.3390/w13192785 - 8 Oct 2021
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2325
Abstract
Solar photocatalytic inactivation (SPCI) of E. coli as the indicator microorganism using LaFeO3 (LF) has already been investigated under various experimental conditions, excluding any role of natural organic matter (NOM). However, comprehensive information about the behavior of E. coli and its inactivation [...] Read more.
Solar photocatalytic inactivation (SPCI) of E. coli as the indicator microorganism using LaFeO3 (LF) has already been investigated under various experimental conditions, excluding any role of natural organic matter (NOM). However, comprehensive information about the behavior of E. coli and its inactivation mechanism in the presence of NOM, as well as the behavior of NOM components via solar photocatalysis using LF as a photocatalyst, has prime importance in understanding real natural water environments. Therefore, in this study, further assessment was devoted to explore the influence of various NOM representatives on the SPCI of E. coli by using LF as a novel non-TiO2 photocatalyst. The influence of NOM as well as its sub-components, such as humic acids (HA) and fulvic acids (FA), was also investigated to understand different NOM-related constituents of real natural water conditions. In addition to spectroscopic and mechanistic investigations of cell-derived organics, excitation emission matrix (EEM) fluorescence spectra with parallel factor multiway analysis (PARAFAC) modeling revealed further information about the occurrence and/or disappearance of NOM-related and bacteria-related fluorophores upon LF SPCI. Both the kinetics as well as the mechanism of the LF SPCI of E. coli in the presence of NOM compounds displayed substrate-specific variations under all conditions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Perspectives in Photocatalytic Water Treatment)
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16 pages, 5073 KiB  
Article
Photocatalytic Efficiency of Metallo Phthalocyanine Sensitized TiO2 (MPc/TiO2) Nanocomposites for Cr(VI) and Antibiotic Amoxicillin
by Melek Koç Keşir, Münevver Sökmen and Zekeriya Bıyıklıoğlu
Water 2021, 13(16), 2174; https://doi.org/10.3390/w13162174 - 8 Aug 2021
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 3296
Abstract
Dye sensitization on semiconductor catalyst TiO2 was performed with four different metallophthalocyanine (MPc) derivates (M: Zn, Cu, Co, and Si) using a modified sol-gel method. MPc derivatives were loaded on TiO2 at 1% mass ratio aiming to increase its photocatalytic action [...] Read more.
Dye sensitization on semiconductor catalyst TiO2 was performed with four different metallophthalocyanine (MPc) derivates (M: Zn, Cu, Co, and Si) using a modified sol-gel method. MPc derivatives were loaded on TiO2 at 1% mass ratio aiming to increase its photocatalytic action and to shift the light absorption to higher UV region (365 nm). Non-ionic surfactant Triton X-100 (TX-100) was used to obtain a homogenous and mesa pore catalyst structure. The prepared catalysts were characterized by FT-IR, XRD, and SEM to determine the crystal and surface structural properties of nanocomposites. The nanocomposites were used for photocatalytic removal and degradation of Cr(VI) and amoxicillin (AMX) as model pollutants. Photocatalytic reduction capacities of the catalysts were tested for Cr(VI) (10 mg/L) and AMX (20 mg/L) aqueous solutions. ZnPc-TiO2 catalyst was successful for Cr(VI) photoreduction since all Cr(VI) ions in the solution were successfully removed. Presence of TX-100 in the sol-gel synthesis of ZnPc-TiO2 had a positive effect by increasing the Cr(VI) removal rate to 97.93% after 150 min exposure period. Prepared catalysts were also tested for photodegradation of AMX, applying similar procedures. In general, all catalysts exhibited low degradation rates under the studied condition but more effective with 254 nm UV light (50.38%). Neither surface modification with TX-100 nor MPc sensitization provided significant degradation of AMX. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Perspectives in Photocatalytic Water Treatment)
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19 pages, 3326 KiB  
Article
Iprodione Removal by UV-Light-, Zero-Valent Iron- and Zero-Valent Aluminium-Activated Persulfate Oxidation Processes in Pure Water and Simulated Tertiary Treated Urban Wastewater
by Bahareh Montazeri, Olga Koba-Ucun, Idil Arslan-Alaton and Tugba Olmez-Hanci
Water 2021, 13(12), 1679; https://doi.org/10.3390/w13121679 - 17 Jun 2021
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2447
Abstract
The degradation of iprodione (IPR), a once frequently used but recently banned dicarboximide fungicide, by UV-C light-, zero-valent iron- (ZVI), and zero-valent aluminium (ZVA)-activated persulfate (PS) oxidation processes was comparatively studied in distilled (pure) water (DW) and simulated, tertiary treated urban wastewater (SWW). [...] Read more.
The degradation of iprodione (IPR), a once frequently used but recently banned dicarboximide fungicide, by UV-C light-, zero-valent iron- (ZVI), and zero-valent aluminium (ZVA)-activated persulfate (PS) oxidation processes was comparatively studied in distilled (pure) water (DW) and simulated, tertiary treated urban wastewater (SWW). The performance of PS-activated oxidation processes was examined by following IPR (2–10 mg/L) removal, PS (0.01–1.00 mM) consumption, metal ion release (for the two heterogeneous catalytic oxidation processes), dissolved organic carbon (DOC) removal as well as hydroxylated aromatic and low molecular weight aliphatic degradation products. The effect of pH and PS concentrations on IPR removal was examined in DW. While the experiments in DW highlighted the superior performance of UV-C/PS treatment (with 78% DOC removal after 120 min at pH = 6.2), the performance of UV-C/PS treatment decreased sharply (to 24% DOC removal after 120 min at pH = 6.8) in the complex wastewater matrix (in SWW). Complete IPR (in 20 min) and 40% DOC (in 120 min) removals were obtained with ZVI/PS treatment (1 g/L ZVI, 1.5 mM PS, pH = 3.0), which was the most effective oxidation process in SWW. The treatment performance was strongly influenced by the SWW constituents, and UV-C/PS treatment appeared to be the most sensitive to it. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Perspectives in Photocatalytic Water Treatment)
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17 pages, 2621 KiB  
Article
Photocatalytic Bactericidal Performance of LaFeO3 under Solar Light: Kinetics, Spectroscopic and Mechanistic Evaluation
by Nazmiye Cemre Birben, Ezgi Lale, Renato Pelosato, Ceyda Senem Uyguner Demirel, Isabella Natali Sora and Miray Bekbolet
Water 2021, 13(9), 1135; https://doi.org/10.3390/w13091135 - 21 Apr 2021
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 2498
Abstract
Lanthanum orthoferrites are a versatile class of catalysts. Here, the photocatalytic bactericidal performance of LaFeO3 (LF) to inactivate pathogenic microorganisms, i.e., Escherichia coli (E. coli), in water under simulated solar irradiation conditions was investigated. Various competing and contributing factors were [...] Read more.
Lanthanum orthoferrites are a versatile class of catalysts. Here, the photocatalytic bactericidal performance of LaFeO3 (LF) to inactivate pathogenic microorganisms, i.e., Escherichia coli (E. coli), in water under simulated solar irradiation conditions was investigated. Various competing and contributing factors were covered to visualize the reaction medium consisting of E. coli K12 cells, organic sub-fractions formed by cell destruction, and LF surface. LF solar photocatalytic inactivation (SPCI) kinetics revealed the highest inactivation rate in ultrapure water as expected, followed by distilled water (DW), aqueous solution containing anions and cations (WM) and saline solution (SS). Characterization of the released organic matter was achieved by UV-vis and fluorescence spectroscopic techniques as well as organic carbon contents (DOC). Upon SPCI, significant amounts of K+ along with released protein contents were detected expressing cell wall destruction and lysis. Under the specified experimental conditions, in the presence of released intracellular organic and inorganic components via cell lysis, a significant count of E. coli was still present in SS, whereas almost all bacteria were removed in other matrices due to various challenging reasons. Based on the presented data, SPCI of E. coli using LF as a novel photocatalyst was successfully demonstrated as an alternative and promising method for disinfection purposes. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Perspectives in Photocatalytic Water Treatment)
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29 pages, 7913 KiB  
Article
Preparation of PANI Modified ZnO Composites via Different Methods: Structural, Morphological and Photocatalytic Properties
by Nazli Turkten, Yunus Karatas and Miray Bekbolet
Water 2021, 13(8), 1025; https://doi.org/10.3390/w13081025 - 8 Apr 2021
Cited by 26 | Viewed by 3377
Abstract
Polyaniline modified zinc oxide (PANI-ZnO) photocatalyst composites were synthesized by focusing on dissolution disadvantage of ZnO. In-Situ chemical oxidation polymerization method was performed under neutral conditions (PANI-ES) whereas in hybridization method physical blending was applied using emeraldine base of polyaniline (PANI-EB). PANI-ZnO composites [...] Read more.
Polyaniline modified zinc oxide (PANI-ZnO) photocatalyst composites were synthesized by focusing on dissolution disadvantage of ZnO. In-Situ chemical oxidation polymerization method was performed under neutral conditions (PANI-ES) whereas in hybridization method physical blending was applied using emeraldine base of polyaniline (PANI-EB). PANI-ZnO composites were prepared in various ratios of aniline (ANI) to ZnO as 1%, 3%, 6% and 9%. The alterations on the structural and morphological properties of PANI-ZnO composites were compared by Fourier Transform Infrared (FT-IR), Raman Spectroscopy, X-ray Diffraction (XRD) and Scanning Electron Microscopy-Energy Dispersive X-ray Analysis Unit (SEM-EDAX) techniques. FT-IR and Raman spectroscopy confirmed the presence of PANI in all composites. SEM images revealed the morphological differences of PANI-ZnO composites based on PANI presence and preparation methods. Photocatalytic performances of PANI-ZnO specimens were investigated by following the degradation of methylene blue (MB) in aqueous medium under UVA irradiation. The effects of catalyst dose and initial dye concentration were also studied. MB degradation was followed by both decolorization extents and removal of aromatic fractions. PANI-ZnO composites expressed enhanced photocatalytic performance (~95% for both methods) as compared to sole ZnO (~87%). The hybridization method was found to be more efficient than the In-Situ chemical oxidation polymerization method emphasizing the significance of the neutral medium. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Perspectives in Photocatalytic Water Treatment)
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