Advanced ABO₄-type ternary metal oxides for photocatalytic environmental remediation: Recent progress and future...

ABO₄-type oxides have emerged as promising multifunctional semiconductor materials due to their structural flexibility, tunable band structures, and excellent physicochemical stability. This review summarizes recent advancements in the synthesis, characterization, and photocatalytic environmental applications of ABO₄-type oxides. Various synthesis techniques, including solid-state, sol-gel, hydrothermal, co-precipitation, and polymer-assisted methods, are discussed with emphasis on controlling crystallinity, morphology, particle size, and surface defects, which strongly influence photocatalytic performance. Owing to their suitable band gaps and efficient charge transport, ABO₄ oxides have demonstrated significant potential for the photocatalytic degradation of organic dyes, pharmaceutical pollutants, and industrial contaminants under ultraviolet and visible light irradiation. The influence of heterojunction formation, elemental doping, and composite engineering on charge separation efficiency and photocatalytic activity is critically analyzed. In addition, the mechanisms governing reactive oxygen species generation and pollutant degradation pathways are discussed to establish the relationship between structural features and functional behavior. Finally, major challenges, including rapid charge carrier recombination, photocorrosion, and scalability of synthesis methods, are outlined along with future perspectives for developing highly efficient and stable photocatalytic systems. Overall, this review provides a comprehensive understanding of ABO₄-type oxides for sustainable environmental remediation applications.