APVV-21-0039: Photochemically Versatile Materials for Water Treatment

This fundamental research project is based on photochemically versatile (PCV) materials which are simultaneously combined photocatalysis and photo-Fenton with additional synergy. Indeed, by looking at the literature, the photocatalytic and Fenton processes are intensively documented with tens of thousands of publications during last years without significant advancement for real applications. Therefore, the idea of this project is to provide a breakthrough in photochemical science. The PCV materials will be prepared in the form of composites (composed photocatalytic and photo-Fenton materials e.g. TiO2 and Fe2O3) and as single-phase materials (semiconductor photocatalyst composed of element active in photo-Fenton process e.g. CuFe2O4). The optical and structural properties of PCV materials are extensively investigated using a wide range of techniques (XRD, SEM, TEM, DRS, XPS, UPS, etc.). The photochemical process triggered by PCV materials are fully resolved. To this end, photocatalytic and photo-Fenton processes are studied as a whole by analyzing the oxidative power of PCV materials i.e. by quantifying the reactive species using both fluorescence and EPR techniques. To investigate the synergy in PCV materials, the photocatalysis and photo-Fenton are subsequently quenched, thus allowing to determine the contribution of each photochemical processes along with the synergy effect. Finally, the PCV materials are tested in the degradation of different organic pollutants in both synthetic and real wastewater. Such tests highlight the relevance of this project based on the innovative concept of photochemical versatility for applications in sustainable water treatment in the frame of the circular economy of water.