Facile encapsulating Ag nanoparticles into a Tetrathiafulvalene-based Zr-MOF for enhanced Photocatalysis

A facile and efficient synthetic strategy was used to prepare a silver nanoparticles-doped MOF (Ag NPs@Zr-TTFTB, TTFTB = tetrathiafulvalene tetrabenzoate) catalyst. Considering the stability of Zr-6 cluster-based MOFs and the confinement of small Ag NPs (below 5 nm), title hybrids can be used for the photocatalytic degradation of sulfamethoxazole (SMZ). The prepared Ag NPs@Zr-TTFTB were found to efficiently remove SMZ (k = 0.009 min(-1)) and remain active in the wide range of pH values (3.0 similar to 9.0) and four cycles. The leaching amount of Ag and Zr under different pH values were only accounted for 0.18% similar to 0.61% and 0.01% similar to 0.05% of used Ag NPs@Zr-TTFTB, respectively, which indicated its excellent stability. Studies on the catalytic mechanism revealed that the proposed heterostructure of Ag NPs and Zr-TTFTB led to the electron transfer and the generation of active oxygen species, resulting in its remarkable photocatalytic activities.

Automated summary

A facile and efficient synthetic strategy was used to prepare a silver nanoparticles-doped MOF catalyst, which showed high efficiency in removing sulfamethoxazole. The catalyst demonstrated excellent stability and remarkable photocatalytic activities.