Broccoli-liked silver phosphate nanoparticles supported on green nanofiber membrane for visible-light driven...

In view of the practical application, it is imperative to develop efficient, exercisable, and visible light driven water pollution treatment materials. Herein, a high-efficiency green photocatalytic membrane for water pollution treatment is proposed and fabricated conveniently. Firstly, silver phosphate (Ag₃PO₄) nanoparticles with controlled morphology were prepared by simple liquid-phase precipitation method, and then a hierarchical structured Ag₃PO₄@polylactic acid (PLA) composite nanofiber membrane was prepared by electrospinning. Using electrospun PLA nanofiber membrane as a carrier of photocatalysts can significantly improve the dispersion of Ag₃PO₄nanoparticles, and increase the contact probability with pollutants and photocatalytic activity. The prepared PLA@Ag₃PO₄composite membrane was used to degrade methylene blue (MB) and tetracycline hydrochloride (TC) under visible light irradiation. The results showed that the removal ratio of pollutants on Ag₃PO₄@PLA composite nanofiber membrane was 94.0% for MB and 82.0% for TC, demonstrating an outstanding photocatalytic activity of composite membrane. Moreover, the PLA nanofiber membrane is a self-supported and biodegradable matrix. After five cycles, it can still achieve 88.0% of the initial photocatalytic degradation rate towards MB, showing excellent recyclability. Thus, this composite nanofiber membrane is a high-efficiency and environmental-friendly visible light driven water pollution treatment material that could be used in real applications.