Deposition of perovskite-type LaFeO3 particles on spherical commercial polystyrene resin: A new platform for enhanced photo-Fenton-catalyzed degradation and simultaneous wastewater purification

The application of nanosized photocatalytic materials in powder form bring some drawbacks like agglomeration and difficulty in separation in scale up processes. In this study, commercial polystyrene based resin was offered as a new platform for the deposition of catalyst nanoparticles. For this purpose, perovskite LaFeO3 nanoparticles were deposited on DiaionTM HP21 resin via a facile hydrothermal process and the heterostructured catalyst exhibited enhanced ultraviolet-visible light absorption efficiency, photocatalytic, Fenton and photo-Fenton catalytic activities towards tetracycline antibiotic. The effect of solution pH, stability and the degradation intermediates of tetracycline as well as environmental application in different water media under sunlight irradiation were also explored. Furthermore, the catalytic degradation mechanism was examined with reactive radical scavenger tests. Apart from tetracycline molecule, the photo-Fenton catalytic activities of the heterostructured catalyst with respect to different dye and antibiotic components were also investigated to establish the relationship between adsorption and photocatalysis. Exploring the possible utilization of the newly designed commercial resin not only solving the environmental issue but also highlighting its further usage with the concept of "photocatalysis". (C) 2020 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.