Photocatalytic foams for water treatment: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Photocatalytic Membranes Toward Practical Environmental Remediation: Fundamental, Fabrication, and Application

“…As a photocatalytic solid‐phase load, the foam has the advantages of easy production, low cost, lightweight, and excellent mechanical properties. [ 95 ] However, the foaming method is difficult to mass‐produce, and the photocatalyst distribution is uneven. Scholars have tried to use different methods to prepare foamy photocatalytic membranes and cut them into thin slices, which have shown excellent photocatalytic properties.…”

Mixed-phase titania foams via 3D-printing for pharmaceutical degradation

“…21 Supported photocatalysts do not require downstream removal, but lower surface areas result in lower treatment efficiencies. 22 In addition, there are issues of shadowing, where the non-transparent support material blocks irradiation of the photocatalyst. 23 Photocatalytic foams, are an emerging alternative to slurry and supported catalysts, 22 integrating the benets of both, while mitigating the drawbacks associated with each.…”

“…21 Supported photocatalysts do not require downstream removal, but lower surface areas result in lower treatment efficiencies. 22 In addition, there are issues of shadowing, where the non-transparent support material blocks irradiation of the photocatalyst. 23…”

“…25 Photocatalyst nanoparticles decorated onto a porous support have been shown to outperform an equivalent amount of unsupported catalyst, 25 but the weak catalyst–support interaction can lead to leaching. 22 Substrate-free foams, where photoactivity is intrinsic to the catalyst with no support present, remove this concern, but these foams are often synthesised via liquid templating, 26 or via aeration of a sol–gel, 27 limiting the ability to precisely control the microstructure of the foams.…”

Industrially Scalable and Refreshable Photocatalytic Foam

“…Considering these factors, various styles of photocatalytic membranes have been fabricated by loading catalysts onto plastic, ceramic, metal mesh/foam, and glass substrates through electrospinning, spraying, and other processes. [6][7][8][9][10] Low-cost and highly stable polymers, such as polyacrylonitrile (PAN), poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF), polystyrene (PS), polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU), and polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), are usually used as substrate and binder in the photocatalytic membrane. [11][12][13][14][15][16][17] However, the existing photocatalytic membranes are vulnerable to serious catalyst leaching (binder decomposition by photocatalytic reaction) and micropollutant cover fouling.…”