Enhancing catalytic efficiency of graphene in degradation of organic pollutants - Role of surface modification

Abstract

This research aims to protect freshwater resources from industrial effluents and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, addressing the issue of global warming. The study focuses on synthesizing smart non-metal functionalized graphene materials by converting saccharide units into graphene layers doped with oxygen, sulphur, and nitrogen (GO, S-GO, N-GO) for the primary treatment of various organic-based industrial effluents. The significant factors such as saccharides as precursor, heteroatom doping (O, N, S), pH, time, temperature, microstructure, surface functional groups, and morphology have been explored to enhance adsorption and photocatalytic efficiency. The study targeted less-explored pollutants like textile based azo, xanthenes, thiazine dyes and chlorophenols. Catalytic efficiency has been assessed via fluorescence properties, showing that S-GO exhibited superior photocatalytic performance compared to GO and N-GO. A linear correlation between fluorescence intensity, lifetime, and photocatalytic activity for degrading 2,6-dichlorophenol and organic dyes is observed using sample S-GO as the catalyst. The role play of Sulphur in the efficient catalytic activity of graphene structure is well analyzed. The research findings offer valuable insights for designing functionalized 2D Carbon materials, which could serve as effective catalysts for treating pollutants from textile, pharmaceutical, and petrochemical industries.