Self-assembled TiO2/MOF on corrugated paper as a recyclable and efficient composite for dual-channel dye removal

• Published in: Journal of cleaner production 2023-10, Vol.422, p.138679, Article 138679
• Main Authors: Luo, Fan, Li, Min, Liang, Xianghui, Yang, Jingxian, Wang, Shuangfeng, Gao, Xuenong, Zhang, Zhengguo, Fang, Yutang
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Al-fumarate; Corrugated paper; Dye removal; Recyclable; TiO2 nanoparticles
• ISSN: 0959-6526; 1879-1786
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jclepro.2023.138679

Adsorption separation and photocatalytic techniques have emerged as effective methods to eliminate organic dyes from water environment, but the poor recycling of most powdered adsorbents and photocatalysts in aqueous solutions hinders their commercial viability. Herein, we propose an effective and reusable dye-elimination module through the bottom-up self-assembly of photocatalyst (TiO2 nanoparticles) and adsorbent (Al-fumarate) on a corrugated paper (CP) support. Results show that the hydrophilic and electrostatic interactions between the components ensure the integrity of the whole module in aqueous phase dyes, thereby ensuring its practicality and cyclic stability (10 times). Al-fumarate with a superior specific surface area of (1117.82 m2/g) and porosity (0.47 cm3/g) on the substrate serves to induce and capture the dye molecules, while TiO2 nanoparticles with a wide bandgap trigger a redox reaction to further degrade the organic pollutants. Through the synergistic effect between adsorption and photocatalytic strategies, the resultant functional CP-based composite exhibits superior dye-removal performance than other potential composite materials, reaching 98.93% degradation efficiency of congo red (CR) solution (25 mg/L), and 97.91% elimination capacity of methylene blue (MB) solution (20 mg/L). Therefore, the designed dye-elimination module can serve as a convenient, recyclable, and efficient cleaning module in practical wastewater treatment fields. [Display omitted] •The 3D dye-removing module is designed by a hierarchical self-assembly method.•The designed composite possesses two water purification strategies.•The designed composite shows high dye-removal efficiency.•Different from powdered materials, the recycling of block samples is very convenient.