Solar light-driven simultaneous pharmaceutical pollutant degradation and green hydrogen production using a mesoporous nanoscale WO3 /BiVO4 heterostructure photoanode
Journal article, 2023
Photoelectrocatalysis is one of the most favourable techniques that could be used in this remit as it has the potential to utilise natural sunlight to generate oxidants in situ to mediate effective pollutant degradation. This work, therefore, utilises a mesoporous nanoscale WO3/BiVO4 heterostructure photoanode to effectively degrade ibuprofen in wastewater combined with simultaneous green hydrogen generation at the cathode under simulated sunlight. A near complete degradation (>96%) of ibuprofen (starting concentration of 100 mg/L), with no hazardous intermediates (determined via mass spectrometry analysis), along with simultaneous H2 evolution of 114 µmol/cm2 after 145 min was demonstrated in this work. In addition, intermediate product analysis, the role of the type of in situ oxidants on degradation, the mechanistic pathway of degradation, and the material characteristics of mesoporous photoanode were also investigated. First experimental evidence of in situ generated H2O2 contributing to the degradation of ibuprofen is presented.
Pharmaceutical pollutants
Photoelectrocatalysis
WO , BiVO 3 4
Hydrogen
Solar Energy
Wastewater treatment
Author
Katherine Rebecca Davies
Swansea University
Michael G. Allan
Swansea University
Sanjay Nagarajan
University of Bath
Rachel Townsend
Swansea University
Tom Dunlop
Swansea University
James D. McGettrick
Swansea University
Vijayshankar Asokan
Chalmers, Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Energy and Material
Sengeni Ananthraj
Waseda University
Trystan Watson
Swansea University
A. Ruth Godfrey
Swansea University
J. R. Durrant
Imperial College London
Swansea University
M. Mercedes Maroto-Valer
Heriot-Watt University
Moritz F. Kuehnel
Swansea University
Fraunhofer Society
Sudhagar Pitchaimuthu
Swansea University
Heriot-Watt University
Journal of Environmental Chemical Engineering
2213-2929 (ISSN) 2213-3437 (eISSN)
Vol. 11 3 110256Subject Categories (SSIF 2011)
Physical Chemistry
Materials Chemistry
Other Chemical Engineering
DOI
10.1016/j.jece.2023.110256