BiVO₄-based magnetic heterostructures as photocatalysts for degradation of antibiotics in water

Pollution and scarcity of water resources are considered one of the biggest concerns nowadays. Thus, the development of new technologies or materials that allow the improvement of water quality and its reuse is still in progress. Heterogeneous semiconductor photocatalysis has attracted great interest among available Advanced Oxidation Processes (AOP) applied to wastewater decontamination [1]. These methods have been regarded as particularly effective options for eliminating certain organic pollutants, potentially harmful to living organisms even if present in small amounts. Bismuth vanadate (BiVO₄) has been investigated as a photocatalyst of interest due to its ability to harvest photons efficiently in the visible spectral region [2]. In addition, powdered BiVO4 shows high photochemical stability, good dispersibility, and resistance to corrosion in oxidative conditions. Photocatalysts can be designed with other functionalities such as magnetic properties by coupling nanoparticles of cobalt ferrites, in order to provide their easy and fast separation from waters by application of an external magnetic field.

In this communication, we will present the synthesis and characterization of magnetic heterostructures of BiVO₄/CoFe₂O₄ and their photocatalytic activity on the photodegradation of sulfamethoxazole (SMX) dissolved in water, and their reuse in further catalytic cycles.

A.C. Estrada acknowledges the research position funded by national funds (OE), through FCT-Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, I.P., in the scope of the framework contract foreseen in the numbers 4, 5 and 6 of the article 23, of the Decree-Law 57/2016, of August 29, changed by Law 57/2017, of July 19. This work was developed within the scope of the project CICECO-Aveiro Institute of Materials, UIDB/50011/2020, UIDP/50011/2020 & LA/P/0006/2020, financed by national funds through the FCT/MEC (PIDDAC).

[1] Ganiyu S.O.; Sable S.; El-Din M. G., Chemical Engineering Journal, 2022, 429, 132492; [2] Malathi A.; Madhavan J.; Ashokkumar M.; Arunachalam P., Appl. Catal., A, 2018, 555, 47-74.