Electrospun TiO2-GO/PAN-CA nanofiber mats: A novel material for remediation of organic contaminants and nitrophenol reduction

• Published in: Environmental research 2023-10, Vol.234, p.116587-116587, Article 116587
• Main Authors: Hassan, Hassan M.A., Alsohaimi, Ibrahim Hotan, El-Aassar, M.R., El-Hashemy, Mohammed A., El-Sayed, Mohamed Y., Alotaibi, N.F., Betiha, Mohamed A., Alsuhybani, Mohammed, Alenazi, Raghad Ayed
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Electrospinning; Environmental sustainability; Graphene oxide; Nanofibers; TiO2; Water remediation
• ISSN: 0013-9351; 1096-0953
• DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2023.116587

The outstanding properties of nanofiber composites have made them a popular choice for various structural applications. Recently, there has been a growing interest in using electrospun nanofibers as reinforcement agents, which possess exceptional properties that can enhance the performance of these composites. Herein, TiO2-graphene oxide (GO) nanocomposite incorporated into polyacrylonitrile (PAN)/cellulose acetate (CA) nanofibers were fabricated by an effortless electrospinning technique. The chemical and structural characteristics of the resulting electrospun TiO2-GO nanofibers were examined employing diverse techniques such as XRD, FTIR, XPS, TGA, mechanical properties, and FESEM. Remediation of organic contaminants and organic transformation reactions with electrospun TiO2-GO nanofibers were performed. The results indicated that the incorporation of TiO2-GO with various TiO2/GO ratios did not affect the molecular structure of PAN-CA. Still, they did significantly increase the mean fiber diameter (234–467 nm) and the mechanical properties of the nanofibers comprising UTS, elongation, Young's modulus, and toughness compared to PAN-CA. From various ratios of TiO2/GO (0.01TiO2/0.005GO and 0.005TiO2/0.01GO) in the electrospun NFs, the nanofiber containing a high content of TiO2 showed over 97% of the initial MB dyes were degraded after 120 min of visible light exposure and the same nanofibers also, achieved 96% nitrophenol conversion to aminophenol in just 10 min with activity factor kAF value of 47.7 g−1min−1. These findings illustrate the promise of TiO2-GO/PAN-CA nanofibers for use in various structural applications, particularly in the remediation of organic contaminants from water and organic transformation reactions. •A TiO2-GO nanocomposite was incorporated into PAN-CA nanofibers via electrospinning.•PAN-CA's molecular structure remained unaffected by the addition of TiO2-GO.•The resulting nanofibers exhibited improved mechanical properties and photocatalytic activity.•These findings underscore the potential of nanofiber composites to enhance existing materials and broaden their applications.