Weicheng Xu

Foshan University · School of Environmental and Chemical Engineering

Arsenic (As) is a potentially toxic element (PTE) that causes adverse effects on human health through contamination of soil and groundwater worldwide. Biochar has captured great interest as an amendment for improving soil fertility, immobilizing PTEs, and being a carbon stabilizer. However, unlike other cationic PTEs, pristine biochar has shown uns...

In this study, a novel bimetallic Co-Mo-TiO2 nanomaterial was fabricated through a simple two-step method, and applied as photocatalyst to activate peroxymonosulfate (PMS) with high efficiency for sulfamethoxazole (SMX) removal under visible light. Nearly 100% of SMX was degraded within 30 min in Vis/Co-Mo-TiO2/PMS system, and its kinetic reaction...

Heterogeneous catalysts have been widely used for peroxymonosulfate (PMS) activation to remove persistent contaminants in water. This study successfully prepared cobalt-doped TiO2 using a simple two-step approach for activating PMS to remove tetracycline (TC). The batch experiments showed complete TC degradation within 25 min caused by Co-TiO2 (0.1...

The performance of nano-TiO2 photocatalysts in air treatment is greatly depended on the characteristic properties of TiO2 (morphology, structure, crystal form, and composition) and environmental factors (ambient humidity, contaminant concentration,...

The multiple roles of supporting carrier are always neglected especially in constructing superior photocatalyst. In this study, a multi-functional integrated magnetic bentonite/BiOBr-Bi (MB/BiOBr-Bi) was designed for effective antibiotic removal via a facile method using supporting carrier and loading Bi nanoparticles (Bi NPs). Magnetic bentonite (...

Novel modified-TiO2/Zr-doped SiO2/g-C3N4 ternary composite is fabricated via an in-situ grow of porous Zr–SiO2 layer to TiO2/g-C3N4 heterojunction, which exhibits well adsorption-photocatalytic performance under simulated solar light irradiation. The nano-size mesoporous TiO2 are dispersed on the lamellar g-C3N4, and the Zr–SiO2 is in-situ fabricat...

In this work, discrete quantum dots of crystallized anatase TiO2 are successfully anchored on carbon nanosheets containing amorphous SiO2 via templated self-assembly and pyrolysis routes. The novel hybrid photocatalyst of TiO2/C/SiO2 exhibits well coupled adsorption and visible light photocatalysis on chlorpromazine (CPZ) and the rate constants are...

In this study, a novel nitrogen modified carbon quantum dots (NCDs) decorated graphite carbon nitride /molybdenum (Mo) heterojunction photocatalyst (MCN/NCDs) was obtained by in-situ calcination and physical deposition, and applied as peroxymonosulfate (PMS) activators for tetracycline (TC) removal under visible light. It was found that the MCN/NCD...

In this work, a facile two-step approach involving a templated solvothermal reaction and post-pyrolysis was developed for fabrication of ternary heterojunctions of anatase/rutile quantum dots (QDs)/g-C3N4 (TCN-150), which shows well coupled adsorption and photocatalytic activity. The encapsulation of hydrolyzed titanium precursors by P123 polymer o...

Bimetallic Fe- and Ce-embedded N-enriched porous biochar ([email protected]) was synthesized to activate peroxymonosulfate (PMS) for metronidazole (MNZ) removal. 97.5% decay of MNZ was achieved within 60 min in [email protected]/PMS system. The kinetic reaction rate constant of the [email protected]/PMS system (0.0566 min⁻¹) was 10.5 times higher t...

The efficiency of photocatalysis is mainly determined by effective separation of photogenerated electron and hole. Heterojunction-based photocatalysts allow spatial separation of photogenerated charge carriers at the interface between a semiconductor and a co-catalyst or a secondary semiconductor, leading to effective utilization of those photogene...

Particulate plastics (<5 mm) including both macroplastics (1 μm to 5 mm), microplastics (100 nm to 1 μm) and nanoplastics (<100 nm) have become a global environmental problem due to their widespread occurrence, distribution and ecosystem risk. Although numerous studies on particulate plastics have been conducted in aquatic systems, investigations i...

In this work, a modified g-C3N4/MgZnAl-calcined layered double hydroxide composite (M-CN/cLDH) was successfully fabricated via a template method. The composite material is a hierarchical porous flower-like nanostructure self-assembled from stacked hybrid flakes. The 3D M-CN/cLDH architectures exhibit a synergistic effect of adsorption and photocata...

A facile strategy involving wet impregnation and manual grinding was employed for synthesizing low loading (0.7 wt%) highly dispersed ultra-small quantum dots (QDs) of Bi2O3 anchored graphite carbon nitride (g-C3N4) nanosheets. Post-treatment of the as-prepared Bi2O3 QDs/g-C3N4 by facial photoinduction allowed remarkably boosted photocatalytic remo...

Due to the rapid development of modern industry, the coexistence of antibiotics and inorganic heavy metals pollutants in wastewater has become a universal phenomenon. Therefore, developing efficient and eco-friendly photocatalyst for mixed pollutants degradation is significant. In this work, a well-designed phosphorus and sulfur co-doped g-C3N4 wit...

Water eutrophication is a global environmental problem that poses serious threats to aquatic ecosystems and human health. The evaluation of eutrophication provides a theoretical basis and technical guidance for the management and rehabilitation of water ecosystems. In the last four decades, dozens of evaluation methods have been applied to freshwat...

Ag/g-C3N4 plasmonic photocatalysts with porous structure (Ag/PCN) were successfully synthesized via a thermal exfoliation strategy and photo-reduction method. Owing to the combined merits of porous structure and surface plasmon resonance effect of silver nanoparticles, the Ag/PCN catalysts exhibited excellent photocatalytic performance for the degr...

A series of cobalt oxide (Co3O4) catalysts in dumbbell-brush-type, mesoporous nanosheets and nanorods morphologies were successfully prepared and used as catalysts for toluene oxidation. Tailoring Co3O4 morphology not only changed their physico-chemical properties but also remarkably enhanced their catalytic performance, and the formation of oxygen...

In this work, hybrid TiO2/SiO2/g-C3N4 composite with superstructure (UTSCN) was successfully fabricated via ternary-soft-template method. The morphology of the photocatalysts has been investigated by SEM, TEM and EDS elemental mapping. These characterization results have indicated that UTSCN was comprised of ternary hybrid flower-like microsphere a...

Thin 2D/2D WO3/g-C3N4 Step-scheme (S-scheme) heterojunction with carbon doping and bridge (C-W/N) was constructed with anionic polyacrylamide (APAM), in which APAM functioned as an assistant templet and a carbon source. APAM and WO3 were inserted into g-C3N4 nanosheet. The carbon, thin planar structure and WO3 with oxygen vacancies result in fast c...

The effect of Ca modification on the Ni/ZSM-5 catalyst for efficient toluene oxidation was studied in a plasma-catalytic system. The Ni/ZSM-5 and Ca-Ni/ZSM-5 catalysts were prepared by a wet impregnation method and characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, X-ray photoelec...

Adsorption-discharge plasma system has been applied for catalytic removal of low concentration toluene over a series of Ni-SBA catalysts. Catalytic activity was evaluated towards different relative humidities of air (RH). Meanwhile, gas phase and catalyst surface by-products were investigated during oxidative decomposition of toluene using in situ...

In this work, a novel visible-light-driven ternary BiOI/g-C3N4/CeO2 photocatalyst was successfully synthesized by calcination and hydrothermal treatment. The obtained ternary BiOI/g-C3N4/CeO2 had high photocatalytic performance for the degradation of tetracycline (TC) under visible-light irradiation. The samples were characterized by X-ray diffract...

Ag nanoparticles loaded onto TiO2 nanosheets with exposed {001} facets were synthesized by solvothermal hydrolysis and photoreduction deposition methods. The results suggested that Ag NPs were uniformly dispersed on the surface of anatase TiO2 NSs with a metallic state. The Raman scattering and visible light absorption performances of Ag/TiO2 NSs w...

Here, we report an ultrasensitive colorimetric method for determination of Ag⁺ based on gold nanoparticle (AuNP) oligomers with dark-field microscopy. In a proof-of-concept trial, two cytosine-rich (C-rich) aptamers as the sensing elements and AuNPs as the transducer to produce the detectable signal are designed for Ag⁺ determination. Obviously, th...

Considering the three-dimensional ordered network of Ni foam-supported catalysts and the toxicity effects of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), the design of proper active materials for the highly efficient elimination of VOCs is of vital importance in the environmental field. In this study, a series of Co-Mn composite oxides with different Co/Mn m...

In this study, a series of HZSM-5 catalysts were prepared by the chemical liquid-phase deposition method, and low concentration toluene degradation was carried out in an atmospheric pressure dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) reactor. The catalysts were characterized by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), SEM, TEM, and N2 adsorption analysis techniques...

In this paper, we report a highly sensitive and selective colorimetric assay for Hg2+ detection in aqueous solutions. Bovine serum albumin-gold nanoclusters (BSA-AuNCs) are prepared and used as mimetic peroxidase to catalyze 3,3’,5,5’-tetramethylbenzidine (TMB)-H2O2 system. In the absence of Hg2+, AuNCs can catalyze the reaction between TMB and H2O...

The organic ligand 5,7-dibromo-2-methyl-8-quinolinol (L) was used to react with Dy(NO 3 ) 3 ·6H 2 O at 60 °C to obtain the complex [Dy(L) 3 (CH 3 CH 2 OH)(H 2 O)]·CH 3 CN (1). Furthermore, the electrospray mass spectrometry (ESI–MS) data show that the main molecular fragment was [DyL 2 (DMF) 2 ] ⁺ under the condition of 0 eV voltage. When complex 1...

A heterojunction catalyst, BiVO4/P25, was successfully fabricated using a one-step hydrothermal method. The prepared composite was characterized using XRD, XPS, Raman, FT-IR, UV–vis, SEM, HRTEM and PL. The HRTEM pictures revealed that the heterostructured composite was composed of BiVO4 and P25, and from the pictures of SEM we could see the P25 nan...

Non-thermal plasma (NTP) catalysis has attracted widespread attention in volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Combining NTP with heterogeneous catalyst has been proved to reduce the formation of unwanted by-products and improve the energy efficiency of the process. The mechanisms of interaction with plasma and catalyst and VOCs oxidation in plasma ca...

The adsorption of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and O2 on the surface of the catalyst was one of the vital progresses in the plasma-catalytic oxidation of VOCs. In this work the breakthrough curves of toluene adsorption on the 3%FeOx/SBA-15 were measured under the various O2 concentrations. The results showed that the breakthrough time of tolue...

A modified Hummer's method was adopted for the synthesis of graphene oxide (GO) and reduced graphene oxide (rGO). It was revealed that the modified method is effective for the production of GO and rGO from graphite. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) images of GO and rGO showed a sheet-like morphology. Because of the presence of oxygenated func...

An atmospheric-pressure dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) has been used to investigate the destruction of low concentrations of toluene with nickel loaded SBA-15 (Ni-SBA) catalyst in adsorption-discharge plasma system. The adsorption capacity and catalytic activity of SBA and Ni-SBA were studied. The experimental results showed that the incorporat...

Hybridizing zero-dimensional nanoparticles with two-dimensional graphene oxide nanosheets has been regarded as one of the most promising way to improve the adsorptive and catalytic performance of nanomaterials. Graphene oxide–iron oxide (Fe3O4-GO) nanocomposites were synthesized using a co-precipitation combining hydrothermal method, and then chara...

Silver and nickel based catalysts with γ-Al2O3 support were synthesized via impregnation method for the removal of toluene in the presence of continuous discharge or adsorption- discharge plasma. An elaborate FT-IR analysis confirmed the formation of transient species during the plasma-catalytic oxidation of toluene. TOF-MS analysis indicated benzo...

The destruction of low concentrations of toluene in air streams using a non-thermal plasma catalysis system has been investigated in this study. A series of highly active cobalt incorporated MCM-41 (Co-MCM-41) catalysts were synthesized by a hydrothermal method. For comparison, cobalt-impregnated MCM-41 (Co-MCM-41_imp) catalysts were prepared via a...

Abstract A series of novel p-n junction photocatalysts BiOI/Bi2Sn2O7 (BiOI/BSO) were successfully fabricated via a facile hydrothermal method. The phase structures, morphologies and optical properties of the as-prepared samples were studied by XRD, TEM, HRTEM, BET, XPS, UV-vis DRS and photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy. The results showed that BiO...

The destruction of low concentrations of toluene using two non-thermal plasma catalytic systems has been investigated in this study. Metals (Ag, Mn and AgMn) loaded SBA-15 catalysts were prepared by an impregnation method and further characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), N2 adsorption-desorption isotherm and H2-temperature-programmed reduction...

In this work, a new plasmonic photocatalyst Ag/AgI/BiOI-rectorite was prepared via a cation exchange process. The photocatalyst had been characterized by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), Raman spectra, nitrogen sorption (BET), field-emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and UV–vis diffuse reflectance...

Bi2S3-sensitized Bi2Sn2O7 (BSO) photocatalyst (Bi2S3/BSO) was successfully synthesized through a facile and economical ion exchange method between BSO and thioacetamide (CH3CSNH2). The as-prepared photocatalysts were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), energy-dispersive X-ray (EDX)...

Background Chlorophenols (CPs) are organic pollutants and are most widespread in the aqueous environment. Photocatalytic degradation of organic compounds has been extensively studied as a potential technology for water treatment. In this study, BiOI/Bi2WO6 hierarchical heterostructure with flower-like morphology was synthesized by a facile method u...

This study was conducted to synthesize a series of nanosized BiOI-TiO2 catalysts to photodegrade Bisphenol A solution. The BiOI-TiO2 nanoparticles were synthesized in the reverse microemulsions, consisting of cyclohexane, Triton X-100, n-hexanol, and aqueous salt solutions. The synthesized particles were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Br...

Background Water pollution is a serious problem for the entire world. Photocatalysis is an accepted way to decontaminate water. As the key factor influencing photocatalysis, an environmentally friendly photocatalyst should possess good visible-light-response. Additionally, an efficient catalyst should have good separation of e-/h+ pairs. On account...

Herein, we reported an ultrasonic-assisted synthesis of bismuth-modified rectorite with high visible light-induced photocatalytic activity. The as-synthesized samples were characterized by XRD, FT-IR, FESEM, TEM, BET, and UV–vis DRS techniques. Two toxic and nonbiodegradable organic compounds, Rhodamine B (RhB) and 2,4-dichlorophenol (DCP), were ch...

Under the strategies of doping to extend the absorptive response region of a semiconductor and fabricating a mesoporous structure with large specific surface area to enhance the photocatalytic property, an efficient visible-light-driven photocatalyst of bismuth-doped titanium dioxide (Bi/TiO2) was prepared via a facile sol-gel route. The resulting...

Praseodymium doped Bi 2 Sn 2 O 7 (BSO), as a visible-light responsive photocatalyst, was prepared by a hydrothermal method with different dopant contents. The as-prepared photocatalysts were investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM), transmission electron microscope (TEM), N 2 adsorption-desorption isotherm, X-ray...

Pyrochlore-type Bi2Sn2O7 (BSO) nanoparticles have been prepared by a hydrothermal method assisted with a cationic surfactant cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB). These BSO products were characterized by powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), infrared spectroscopy (IR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Brunauer-...

The synthesis of one-dimension (1D) Bi2S3 nanorods has been successfully achieved through the transformation of BiOI nanosheets at low hydrothermal temperature. Their crystallization, structure and morphology transformation processes were characterized in detail. Crystallite (Bi(Bi2S3)9I3)0.6667 nanorods were identified as intermediate products in...

Herein, a reverse microemulsion route was developed to synthesize bismuth oxyiodide (BiOI) nanocrystals and reduced graphene oxide (RGO) nanocomposites as a highly efficient photocatalyst, and both the formation of BiOI and the reduction of RGO were achieved in situ in microemulsions simultaneously at low temperature (60 °C). The uniform nanocrysta...

In this paper, Bi(2) O(3) and rare earth (La, Ce)-doped Bi(2) O(3) visible-light-driven photocatalysts were prepared in a Triton X-100/n-hexanol/cyclohexane/water reverse microemulsion. The resulting materials were characterized by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area, pho...