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Enhanced visible light-driven photodegradation of tetracycline by salicylic acid-modified graphitic carbon nitride and toxicity assessment

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Abstract

The tetracycline (TC) in water has led to serious concern. Graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) photocatalysts were produced via copolymerization of mono-benzene ring-mediated precursors (urea, melamine, and dicyandiamide) involving salicylic acid (SA) for TC degradation. The SA-modified g-C3N4 samples showed improved visible light absorbance, transfer and separation of photogenerated electrons, and prospective photocatalytic application in TC degradation. As a result, the optimal SA-modified g-C3N4 (2 wt% of SA) using urea (CNU-SA-2) showed 2 times higher TC degradation than that of pristine g-C3N4. The process of TC degradation was evaluated by the reduction of antibacterial activity and extensively studied by varying the types of TC, initial pH values, co-existing anions, and natural organic materials. In addition, the catalyst could be reused for at least four cycles, indicating good reusability. The main active species were revealed to be h+ and ·O2− by scavenging experiments and electron spin resonance. The CNU-SA-2 photocatalyst and TC intermediates during degradation had no adverse impact on zebrafish embryos. This work could provide a design strategy and a perspective on the practical application of g-C3N4-based photocatalysts for the treatment of wastewater containing antibiotics.

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All data generated or analyzed during the current work are included in this published article and its supplementary information files.

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Funding

This work has received the finical support from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 21777116) and the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Biomedical Multidisciplinary Innovation Research Institute, Shanghai East Hospital, Tongji University, 1239 Siping Road, Shanghai, 200092, China

    Mengmeng Chen, Mengxue Li, Stephanie Ling Jie Lee, Juanjuan Tang, Qian Li & Sijie Lin

  2. Key Laboratory of Yangtze River Water Environment, Shanghai Institute of Pollution Control and Ecological Security, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, China

    Mengmeng Chen, Mengxue Li, Stephanie Ling Jie Lee, Juanjuan Tang, Qian Li & Sijie Lin

  3. College of Environmental and Chemical Engineering, Shanghai University of Electric Power, Shanghai, 200090, China

    Mengmeng Chen & Sijie Lin

  4. Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, 4072, Australia

    Peng Li

Authors
  1. Mengmeng Chen
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  2. Mengxue Li
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  3. Peng Li
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  4. Stephanie Ling Jie Lee
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  5. Juanjuan Tang
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  6. Qian Li
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  7. Sijie Lin
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Contributions

Mengmeng Chen: conceptualization, data curation, investigation, methodology, writing—review and editing. Mengxue Li: writing—review and editing. Peng Li: writing—review and editing. Stephanie Ling Jie Lee: writing—review and editing. Juanjuan Tang: data curation. Qian Li: data curation. Sijie Lin: project design, supervision, writing—review and editing, project administration, funding acquisition.

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Mengxue Li or Sijie Lin.

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All animal tests were in accordance with the current Chinese legislation and the Animal Ethics Committee at Tongji University.

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The authors declare no competing interests.

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Chen, M., Li, M., Li, P. et al. Enhanced visible light-driven photodegradation of tetracycline by salicylic acid-modified graphitic carbon nitride and toxicity assessment. Environ Sci Pollut Res 29, 90768–90778 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-022-22000-4

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