Anchoring of 10-phenylphenothiazine to mesoporous silica materials: A water compatible organic photocatalyst for the degradation of pollutants

The application of organic photocatalysts towards the oxidation of pollutants in water is hampered by different limitations such as their insolubility in the media. Herein, we report that the grafting of a photoorganocatalyst into mesoporous silica materials is an ideal approach to obtain effective catalysts. Thereby, the photocatalyst 10-phenylphenothiazine (PTH) was easily anchored into three different mesoporous silica-based materials (MSN, MSU-2 and SBA-15) with different particle sizes and pore sizes through an amide bond formation. The materials were characterized using IR analysis, solid-state X-ray diffraction, porosity and microscopy (SEM and TEM) techniques, showing that PTH is immobilized inside the pores of the materials and its optical properties are maintained after the anchoring. Although homogeneous PTH was inactive in water media, the three photocatalytic materials were active for the degradation of pollutants. SBA-15-AP-PTH exhibited the highest catalytic performance towards the degradation of acetaminophen and diclofenac under solar irradiation, finding in this manner a new strategy for the decontamination of pollutants. ?? 2022 Published by Elsevier Ltd on behalf of The editorial office of Journal of Materials Science & Technology.

Automated summary

Grafting photoorganocatalysts into mesoporous silica materials is an ideal approach for obtaining effective catalysts, maintaining their optical properties, and degrading pollutants in water media.