Fabrication of samarium doped MOF-808 as an efficient photocatalyst for the removal of the drug cefaclor from water

• Published in: RSC advances 2024-03, Vol.14 (15), p.1736-1748
• Main Authors: Khaleeq, Anum, Tariq, Saadia Rashid, Chotana, Ghayoor Abbas
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Chemistry; Decoration; Efficiency; Electromagnetic absorption; Metal-organic frameworks; Morphology; Octahedrons; Photocatalysis; Photocatalysts; Photodegradation; Samarium; Ultraviolet radiation; Wastewater treatment
• ISSN: 2046-2069; 2046-2069
• DOI: 10.1039/d4ra00914b

MOFs are emerging photocatalysts designed by tuning organic ligands and metal centers for optimal efficiency. In this study, a samarium decorated MOF-808(Ce) metal organic framework was fabricated by facile hydrothermal synthesis. The synthesized samarium decorated MOF-808(Ce) was characterized by using analytical techniques such as SEM, EDX, XRD and TGA to study its morphological, thermal and structural properties. SEM images showed that MOF-808(Ce) comprised of truncated octahedrons. The morphology of the material was changed upon Sm incorporation. Sm/MOF-808(Ce) exhibited better UV-vis light absorption properties than MOF-808(Ce) as evidenced by its slightly higher band gap value. This material was exploited for the degradation of the drug cefaclor from water. Cefaclor removal followed double a first order in parallel model (DFOP). Under UV light, 97.7% of the cefaclor was removed in only 20 minutes and after 60 minutes this removal efficiency was increased to 99.25%. These features exhibited that samarium decorated MOF has immense potential for the photocatalytic degradation of cefaclor as it generates e − and h + to enhance the photocatalytic efficiency and it is a promising candidate to treat wastewater without formation of harmful byproducts. MOFs are emerging photocatalysts designed by tuning organic ligands and metal centers for optimal efficiency.