Investigating photocatalytic removal of Doxycycline antibiotic using ZnO@g C3N4 nanocomposite in aqueous environments

Abstract

removable by conventional wastewater treatment processes. This study aimed to investigate the photocatalytic removal of the antibiotic Doxycycline using the ZnO@g-C3N4nanocomposite in aqueous environments. The ZnO@g-C3N4 nanocomposite was synthesized for the first time and evaluated for the photocatalytic degradation of the antibiotic Doxycycline in aqueous environments under UV-C light. After that, the nanocomposite was analyzed and evaluated using X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), photoluminescence spectroscopy (PL), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDAX). Effective parameters such as pH, pollutant dose, catalyst dose, and time were assessed in the photocatalytic section. The results of this experiment showed that the best degradation and removal efficiency of Doxycycline as a pollutant in aqueous environments under optimal conditions (pH=5, pollutant concentration: 50 mg/l, catalyst dose: 0.5 g/l, and time: 90 min) was 84.14%. The degradation kinetics tests indicated that it follows a second-order kinetic model. According to the obtained results, the ZnO@g-C3N4 nanocomposite can be introduced as an environmentally friendly and suitable catalyst for the degradation of pollutants of pharmaceutical origi