Facile access to high-efficiency degradation of tetracycline hydrochloride with structural optimization of TiN

As a broad-spectrum antibiotic, tetracycline has become a potential ecological hazard. Herein, titanium nitride (TiN), with an advantageous structure, was synthesized by simple heating rate regulation and constructed for tetracycline hydrochloride (TC-HCl) degradation under light irradiation. All the samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), N-2-adsorption/ desorption isotherm, ultraviolet-visible diffuse reflectometry (DRS), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). The results showed that the as-prepared TiN-x catalysts exhibited obviously enhanced photocatalytic property toward TC-HCl degradation compared with the commercial pure phase TiN (p-TiN). According to the results of photocatalytic degradation, TiN synthesized at 6 degrees C/min heating rate had the best removal rate of TC-HCl (90%) after dark reaction for 10 min and photo-degradation for 90 min. In addition, the trapping experiments have demonstrated that the photogenerated holes -(h(+)) and superoxide radical (center dot O-2(-)) are the main oxidation products of the present system. Strikingly, the reuse experiments showed high stability of TiN.

Automated summary

This study synthesized titanium nitride (TiN) with an advantageous structure and demonstrated its enhanced photocatalytic degradation performance compared to pure phase TiN. The TiN synthesized at a heating rate of 6℃/min showed the best degradation efficiency, achieving a removal rate of 90% after 10 minutes of dark reaction and 90 minutes of photo-degradation.