Ultrathin g-C3N4 composite Bi2WO6 embedded in PVDF UF membrane with enhanced permeability, anti-fouling performance and durability for efficient removal of atrazine

Chunyan Yang; Zhihao Zhang; Peng Wang; Peng Xu; Tianyao Shen; Mengqi Wang; Qingzhu Zheng; Guangshan Zhang

doi:10.1016/j.jhazmat.2023.131154

Ultrathin g-C₃N₄ composite Bi₂WO₆ embedded in PVDF UF membrane with enhanced permeability, anti-fouling performance and durability for efficient removal of atrazine

J Hazard Mater. 2023 Jun 5:451:131154. doi: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2023.131154. Epub 2023 Mar 5.

Authors

Chunyan Yang¹, Zhihao Zhang¹, Peng Wang², Peng Xu¹, Tianyao Shen¹, Mengqi Wang¹, Qingzhu Zheng³, Guangshan Zhang⁴

Affiliations

¹ State Key Laboratory of Urban Water Resource and Environment, School of Environment, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150090, China.
² State Key Laboratory of Urban Water Resource and Environment, School of Environment, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150090, China. Electronic address: pwang73@hit.edu.cn.
³ Qingdao Engineering Research Center for Rural Environment, College of Resource and Environment, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao 266109, China.
⁴ Qingdao Engineering Research Center for Rural Environment, College of Resource and Environment, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao 266109, China. Electronic address: gszhanghit@gmail.com.

PMID: 36889068
DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2023.131154

Abstract

A novel Bi₂WO₆-g-C₃N₄/polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) composite ultrafiltration (UF) membrane (BWO-CN/PVDF) was prepared by microwave hydrothermal and immersion precipitation phase transformation method. The BWO-CN/PVDF-0.10 exhibited an outstanding photocatalytic removal rate of atrazine (ATZ) (97.65 %) under the simulated sunlight and enhanced permeate flux (1356.09 L·m^-2·h^-1). The multiple optical and electrochemical detection confirmed that combining ultrathin g-C₃N₄ and Bi₂WO₆ can increase carrier separation rate and prolong its lifetime. The quenching test revealed that h⁺ and ¹O₂ were the prominent reactive species. Additionally, after a 10-cycle photocatalytic process, the BWO-CN/PVDF membrane presented remarkable reusability and durability. And it showed excellent anti-fouling performance by filtering BSA, HA, SA, and Songhua River under simulated solar irradiation. The molecular dynamic (MD) simulation showed that the combination of g-C₃N₄ and Bi₂WO₆ can enhance the interaction between BWO-CN and PVDF. This work opens up a new idea for designing and constructing a highly efficient photocatalytic membrane for water treatment.

Keywords: Bi(2)WO(6); Enhanced permeability; Microwave hydrothermal method; Photocatalytic membrane; Ultrathin g-C(3)N(4).