Nanostructured cerium-doped ZnO for photocatalytic degradation of pharmaceuticals in aqueous solution

Rasheeda Al Abri, Faisal Al Marzouqi, Alex T. Kuvarega, Mohammed A. Meetani, Salma M.Z. Al Kindy, Sreejith Karthikeyan, Younghun Kim, Rengaraj Selvaraj*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

59 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

This work used a simple hydrothermal method to prepare cerium-doped zinc oxide photocatalysts with different particle sizes and morphologies. Studies of the photocatalytic activity revealed that the as-prepared ZnO and Ce-doped nanostructure materials exhibited an improved photocatalytic performance in the degradation of pharmaceuticals such as nizatidine, levofloxacin and acetaminophen under irradiation with UV-B light. Around 95% of the degradation of these pharmaceuticals was achieved within 4 h. These results suggest that ZnO and Ce-doped ZnO are promising candidates for decontamination of hazardous lowly-concentrated pollutants in water.

Original languageEnglish
Article number112065
JournalJournal of Photochemistry and Photobiology A: Chemistry
Volume384
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Nov 1 2019

Keywords

  • Ce doped ZnO
  • Pharmaceuticals
  • Photocatalysis
  • Visible light
  • Water treatment

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Chemistry
  • General Chemical Engineering
  • General Physics and Astronomy

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