Porous Graphitic phase carbon nitride/graphene oxide hydrogel microspheres for efficient and recyclable degradation of aflatoxin B1 in peanut oil

Abstract

Removal of aflatoxin is an urgent issue in agricultural products. A porous graphitic carbon nitride/graphene oxide hydrogel microsphere (CN/GO/SA) was synthesized and used to degrade AFB₁ in peanut oil. CN/GO/SA was characterized by scanning electron micrograph (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and FT-IR. The introduction of GO significantly improved the adsorption capacity and visible light activity of photocatalysts. About 98.4% AFB₁ in peanut oil was removed by 20% CN/GO/SA under visible light for 120 min. ‧O₂^- and h⁺ were the main active species during photoreaction, and five degradation products were identified by UPLC-Q-Orbitrap MS analysis. At the same time, the quality of treated peanut oil was still acceptable. More importantly, CN/GO/SA showed excellent cycle stability, and the degradation rate of AFB₁ in peanut oil remained above 95% after five-time recycling. This work provides a practical way for developing efficient and sustainable photocatalysts to degrade mycotoxins in edible oil.

Keywords: AFB(1) degradation; Degradation mechanism; Hydrogel microspheres; Porous graphitic carbon nitride/graphene oxide; Visible light photocatalysis.