Innovative Materials for Wastewater Treatment

Dear Colleagues,

Owing to the complexity of pollutants in industrial and domestic wastewaters, there is a quest to revisit the conventional materials so far used for the removal of these pollutants from solutions. Innovative technologies therefore have to consider integrated water management with different groups of materials and most importantly biogenic materials for the removal of toxic metal ions, microbial disease, organic and inorganic solutes. Efforts have consequently been devoted into the design and synthesis of smart materials with enabling properties deriving from the hybridization of parent materials with specific features that could enhance either the initial adsorption or photodegradation performances. 

Recently, polymeric organic materials with adsorption potential and suitable band gap for visible light adsorption have been the centre of attraction, for the simple reason that they can promote attraction of pollutants and accelerate the formation of hydroxyl radical for effective degradation of pollutants while also possessing the advantage of environmental friendliness. The incorporation of photocatalysts with adsorbents offer a new design of a photocatalytic system. However, limited studies have been carried out on nanocomposites which have a high adsorbing capacity as well as a high efficiency for the photocatalytic degradation.

This Research Topic highlights the new research work on the development of visible light responsive photocatalytic hybrid nanomaterials using various approaches, such as metal and/or non-metal doping, co-doping, coupling of semiconductors, composites and heterojunctions materials synthesis and explored their application in wastewater treatment. Also highlighted here are the new research work on new approaches of synthesizing, characterizing, and modifying nanomaterials for removal of emerging contaminants from wastewater. Manuscripts on the structural aspects of hybrid nanocomposite Photocatalysts, nanostructure formation process, parameters affecting photocatalytic activity, photocatalytic mechanisms, and photocatalytic applications for the efficient degradation of pollutants in water/air are also welcome. We welcome original research, review, and perspective articles that focus on (but are not limited to) the following themes:

• Design and synthesis of Hybrid Nanocomposite Photocatalysts
• Functionalization procedures and surface modifications of photocatalysts
• g-C3N4-based Hybrid Nanocomposite Photocatalysts
• Doping/co-doping/surface modification of semiconductor photocatalysts
• Application of Photoactive Nanomaterials in Degradation of Pollutants
• Roles of reactive species in pollutant degradation
• Metal imprinted polymers for water pollution remediation.
• Dyes adsorption properties of nano-biocomposites
• Metal organic framework for pollutants removal from water
• Adsorption-assisted photocatalytic degradation of emerging pollutants

Prof. Dr. Elvis Fosso-Kankeu
Prof. Dr. Bhekie Mamba
Guest Editors

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• photocatalysis
• innovative materials
• advanced oxidation processes
• adsorption
• wastewater treatment