Enhancing the antifouling and rejection properties of PVDF membrane by Ag3PO4-GO modification.

Ultrafiltration is an environmentally friendly water treatment technology, but membrane fouling significantly impacts membrane performance and service life. Photocatalytic modification of membrane is regarded as an effective way for membrane fouling control. In this study, graphite oxide (GO), Ag3PO4 and Ag3PO4-GO nanomaterials were applied in polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) ultrafiltration membranes modification, and the membranes was denoted as P-GO, P-AgP and P-AgP@GO, respectively. Filtration of humic acid (HA) at different operating conditions was adopted in evaluation of membrane performance. Among them, P-AgP@GO had the best permeation, rejection and antifouling performances, and could maintain excellent properties when operation conditions (HA concentration, operation pressure, pH and ionic strength) were changed. Furthermore, the effect of photocatalysis on the self-cleaning performance and its mechanism were revealed. The overall performance of P-AgP@GO could be enhanced by visible light irradiation, and extending the visible illumination time during the filtration was conducive to the reusability.

Recyclable self-floating A-GUN-coated foam as effective visible-light-driven photocatalyst for inactivation of Microcystis aeruginosa.

In this work, a recyclable self-floating A-GUN-coated (Ag/AgCl@g-C3N4@UIO-66(NH2)-coated) foam was fabricated for effective inactivation of Microcystis aeruginosa (M. aeruginosa) under visible light. The floating photocatalyst was able to inactivate 98% of M. aeruginosa within 180 min under the visible-light irrigation, and the floating photocatalyst exhibited a stable performance in various conditions. Moreover, the inactivation efficiency can still maintain nearly 92% after five times recycle experiments, showing excellent photocatalytic stability. Furthermore, effects of A-GUN/SMF floating catalyst on the physiological properties, cellular organics, and algal functional groups of M. aeruginosa were studied. The floating photocatalyst can not only make full use of excellent photocatalytic activities of A-GUN nanocomposite, but also promote contact between catalyst and algae, and realize the effective recovery of the photocatalyst. Finally, possible photocatalytic inactivation mechanisms of algae were obtained, which provides references for removing cyanobacteria blooms in real water bodies.

Efficient integration of plasmonic Ag/AgCl with perovskite-type LaFeO3: Enhanced visible-light photocatalytic activity for removal of harmful algae.

A novel plasmonic Ag/AgCl@LaFeO3 (ALFO) photocatalyst was successfully synthesized by a simple in-situ synthesis method with enhanced photocatalytic activity under visible light for harmful algal blooms (HABs) control. The structure, morphology, chemical states, optical and electrochemical properties of the photocatalyst were systematically investigated using a series of characterization methods. Compared with pure LaFeO3 and Ag/AgCl, ALFO-20% owned a higher light absorption capacity and lower electron-hole recombined rate. Therefore, ALFO-20% had higher photocatalytic activity with a near 100% removal rate of chlorophyll a within 150 min, whose kinetic constant was 15.36 and 9.61 times faster than those of LaFeO3 and Ag/AgCl. In addition, the changes of zeta potential, cell membrane permeability, cell morphology, organic matter, total soluble protein, photosynthetic system and antioxidant enzyme system in Microcystis aeruginosa (M. aeruginosa) were studied to explore the mechanism of M. aeruginosa photocatalytic inactivation. The results showed that ALFO-20% could change the permeability and morphology of the algae cell membrane, as well as destroy the photosynthesis system and antioxidant system of M. aeruginosa. What's more, ALFO could further degrade the organic matters flowed out after algae rupture and die, reducing the secondary pollution and avoiding the recurrence of HABs. Finally, the species of reactive oxygen species (ROS) (mainly •O2- and •OH) produced by ALFO were determined through quenching experiments, and a possible photocatalytic mechanism was proposed. Overall, ALFO can efficiently remove the harmful algae under the visible light, providing a promising method for controlling HABs.