Self-Assembled AgNP-Containing Nanocomposites Constructed by Electrospinning as Efficient Dye Photocatalyst Materials for Wastewater Treatment

Yamei Liu; Caili Hou; Tifeng Jiao; Jingwen Song; Xu Zhang; Ruirui Xing; Jingxin Zhou; Lexin Zhang; Qiuming Peng

doi:10.3390/nano8010035

Self-Assembled AgNP-Containing Nanocomposites Constructed by Electrospinning as Efficient Dye Photocatalyst Materials for Wastewater Treatment

Nanomaterials (Basel). 2018 Jan 10;8(1):35. doi: 10.3390/nano8010035.

Authors

Yamei Liu^{1

2}, Caili Hou³, Tifeng Jiao^{4

5}, Jingwen Song^{6

7}, Xu Zhang⁸, Ruirui Xing^{9

10}, Jingxin Zhou¹¹, Lexin Zhang¹², Qiuming Peng¹³

Affiliations

¹ State Key Laboratory of Metastable Materials Science and Technology, Yanshan University, Qinhuangdao 066004, China. liuym@ipe.ac.cn.
² Hebei Key Laboratory of Applied Chemistry, School of Environmental and Chemical Engineering, Yanshan University, Qinhuangdao 066004, China. liuym@ipe.ac.cn.
³ Hebei Key Laboratory of Applied Chemistry, School of Environmental and Chemical Engineering, Yanshan University, Qinhuangdao 066004, China. houcaili@ysu.edu.cn.
⁴ State Key Laboratory of Metastable Materials Science and Technology, Yanshan University, Qinhuangdao 066004, China. tfjiao@ysu.edu.cn.
⁵ Hebei Key Laboratory of Applied Chemistry, School of Environmental and Chemical Engineering, Yanshan University, Qinhuangdao 066004, China. tfjiao@ysu.edu.cn.
⁶ Hebei Key Laboratory of Applied Chemistry, School of Environmental and Chemical Engineering, Yanshan University, Qinhuangdao 066004, China. jwsong@ipe.ac.cn.
⁷ State Key Laboratory of Biochemical Engineering, Institute of Process Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China. jwsong@ipe.ac.cn.
⁸ Hebei Key Laboratory of Applied Chemistry, School of Environmental and Chemical Engineering, Yanshan University, Qinhuangdao 066004, China. zhangxu1991@ysu.edu.cn.
⁹ Hebei Key Laboratory of Applied Chemistry, School of Environmental and Chemical Engineering, Yanshan University, Qinhuangdao 066004, China. rrxing@ipe.ac.cn.
¹⁰ State Key Laboratory of Biochemical Engineering, Institute of Process Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China. rrxing@ipe.ac.cn.
¹¹ Hebei Key Laboratory of Applied Chemistry, School of Environmental and Chemical Engineering, Yanshan University, Qinhuangdao 066004, China. zhoujingxin@ysu.edu.cn.
¹² Hebei Key Laboratory of Applied Chemistry, School of Environmental and Chemical Engineering, Yanshan University, Qinhuangdao 066004, China. zhanglexin@ysu.edu.cn.
¹³ State Key Laboratory of Metastable Materials Science and Technology, Yanshan University, Qinhuangdao 066004, China. pengqiuming@ysu.edu.cn.

Abstract

The design and self-assembly of graphene oxide (GO)-based composite membranes have attracted enormous attention due to their wide application in nanomaterial and environmental fields. In this work, we have successfully developed a strategy to fabricate new composite membranes based on poly(vinyl alcohol)/poly(acrylic acid)/carboxyl-functionalized graphene oxide modified with silver nanoparticles (PVA/PAA/GO-COOH@AgNPs), which were prepared via thermal treatment and the electrospinning technique. Due to the strong π-π forces and strong electrostatic interactions of GO-COOH sheets, the prepared composite membranes and their lager surface areas were modified by scores of AgNPs, which demonstrated that a high-efficiency photocatalyst removed the organic dyes from the aqueous solutions. The prepared PVA/PAA/GO-COOH@AgNPs nanocomposite membranes showed a remarkable photocatalytic capacity in the catalytic degradation of the methylene blue dye solutions. Most importantly, the whole process was easy, mild, and eco-friendly. Additionally, the as-prepared membranes could be repeatedly used after the catalytic reaction.

Keywords: composite membranes; dyes degradation; electrospinning; graphene oxide; photocatalyst; wastewater treatment.