Chinese Journal of Catalysis ›› 2023, Vol. 53: 13-30.DOI: 10.1016/S1872-2067(23)64530-9

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Progress in wastewater treatment via organic supramolecular photocatalysts under sunlight irradiation

Weixu Liua,1, Chang Hea,1, Bowen Zhub, Enwei Zhuc, Yaning Zhangd, Yunning Chena, Junshan Lie, Yongfa Zhua,*()   

  1. aDepartment of Chemistry, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
    bSchool of Environmental and Energy Engineering, Beijing University of Civil Engineering and Architecture, Beijing 100044, China
    cKey Laboratory of Preparation and Applications of Environmental Friendly Materials, Jilin Normal University, Changchun 130052, Jilin, China
    dInternational Joint Research Center for Photoresponsive Molecules and Materials, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, Jiangsu, China
    eInstitute for Advanced Study, Chengdu University, Chengdu 610106, Sichuan, China
  • Received:2023-09-05 Accepted:2023-10-06 Online:2023-10-18 Published:2023-10-25
  • Contact: *E-mail: zhuyf@tsinghua.edu.cn (Y. Zhu).
  • About author:Prof. Yongfa Zhu is currently a full professor of Tsinghua University. He received his BA degree in 1985 from Nanjing University and obtained his master degree in 1988 from Peking University. He had studied and worked at Tsinghua University from 1992 to now and received a PhD degree in 1995. His current research is focused on photocatalysis and application on environmental, energy conversion and anti-tumor. He is the author and co-author of 498 original research papers published in SCI journals. The total cited numbers reached about 46000 and the H-index arrived at 120. About 50 papers were selected as High-Cited Papers by Essential Science Indicators. He is Elsevier highly cited scholar from 2014 to now, and Clarivate highly cited scientist from 2018 to now. Besides, he has written about 5 books and applied about 24 patents. He also serves as the creative editor of Science for Energy and Environment (SEE), the associate editor of Applied Catalysis B, the associate editor of Green Carbon, the vice chairman of China Photosensitive Society and the director of Photocatalytic Committee, and the president of Beijing Indoor and Indoor Environmental Purification Industry Association.

    1 Contributed equally to this work.

  • Supported by:
    The National Key Research and Development Project of China(2020YFA0710304);National Natural Science Foundation of China(22136002);Special Fund Project of Jiangsu Province for Scientific and Technological Innovation in Carbon Peaking and Carbon Neutrality(BK20220023)

Abstract:

Semiconductor photocatalysis offers a promising and sustainable avenue for wastewater treatment due to its ease of separation and recyclability. However, their practical application is currently hampered by limited energy utilization, insufficient mineralization, and low treatment capacity under sunlight. This account summarizes our progress in developing broad-spectrum responsive (extended to 950 nm) supramolecular organic photocatalysts capable of sunlight-driven over 95% pollutant mineralization. Through modulation of molecular dipole and crystallinity, we enhance the built-in electric field, thereby improving charge separation and photodegradation rates. Furthermore, to overcome the low-flux constraints of traditional photocatalysis, we integrated the Fenton catalyst to construct photo-self-Fenton systems, realizing a 29.63 L m-2 h-1 high-flux mineralization under sunlight. Finally, a brief conclusion and outlook on organic photocatalysts have also been presented.

Key words: Photocatalysis, Wastewater treatment, Organic semiconductor, Supramolecular photocatalyst, Built-in electric field