Graphene quantum dots based on maltose as a high yield photocatalyst for efficient photodegradation of imipramine in was
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RESEARCH ARTICLE
Graphene quantum dots based on maltose as a high yield photocatalyst for efficient photodegradation of imipramine in wastewater samples Raheleh Hatefi 1 & Ali Mashinchian-Moradi 1
&
Habibollah Younesi 2 & Saeed Nojavan 3
Received: 10 June 2020 / Accepted: 15 October 2020 # Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
Abstract Purpose In this work, for the first time, graphene quantum dots (GQDs) based on maltose were fabricated as a new photocatalytic material to the photodegradation of imipramine (as a persistence organic pollutant) under light irradiation. Methods The synthesized GQDs were characterized by different instrumentation approaches such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform-infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), nitrogen adsorption/desorption, and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). A Box–Behnken design (BBD) and the response surface methodology (RSM) were applied for the optimization of different factors that affect the overall photocatalytic yield. Results Under the optimized conditions (pH of the sample solution: 2.0; photocatalyst dosage: 0.1 mg mL−1; UV exposure time: 80 min), the highest achievable reduction efficiency was obtained about 80%. The stability and reusability of the synthesized photocatalytic material were investigated in four reaction cycles (80 min), which showed only a 15% photo-activity loss after the fourth photocatalytic runs. Conclusions The proposed method was successfully applied to degrade the mentioned drug in the real wastewater samples by about 70%. Regarding the mentioned advantages by the proposed method, this new kind of photocatalytic material possesses a strong potential for photodegradation of pollutants in industrial wastewater samples.
Keywords Graphene quantum dot . Imipramine . Maltose . Photocatalyst . Photodegradation . Wastewater treatment
Introduction These days great consideration has been paid to the presence of emerging contaminants in the environmental samples. Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) belong to one of the pollutant groups in the wastewater, exhibiting harmful effects on the water quality, human health, and ecosystems in a long time
* Ali Mashinchian-Moradi [email protected] 1
Department of Environmental Science, Faculty of Natural Resources, Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University (IAU), P.O. Box 14515-775, Tehran, Iran
2
Department of Environmental Science, Faculty of Natural Resources, Tarbiat Modares University, P.O. Box 64414-356, Noor, Iran
3
Department of Analytical Chemistry and Pollutants, Shahid Beheshti University, P.O. Box 19839-4716, Tehran, Iran
[1, 2]. Nowadays, many POPs have been detected in surface water, groundwater, and urban wastewater plants, as reported in different works, done around the world [3–5]. Mostly, POPs are antibiotics, analgesics, steroids, antidepressants, antipyretics, fragrances, and cosmetics [1, 6]. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), they can be attended as main contributors toward a global health crisis [7].
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