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Recent Advances in Photocatalysis: An Innovation in Catalysis
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Recent Advances in Photocatalysis: An Innovation in Catalysis

A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Physical Chemistry and Chemical Physics".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 October 2025 | Viewed by 3173

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Andreea L. Chibac-Scutaru

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Polyaddition and Photochemistry Department, Petru Poni Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry, 41 A Gr. Ghica Voda Alley, 700487 Iasi, Romania
Interests: photocatalysis; metal/metal oxide nanoparticles; hybrid polymeric nanocomposites; photosensitizer; organic pollutants removal; generation of hydrogen; cellulosic materials; fluorescent sensors
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Environmental protection has risen to the top of the global agenda, and major efforts are being undertaken to identify sustainable strategies for long-term environmental remediation. Two of the most pressing concerns to be faced by the world are water contamination and the energy crisis. Photocatalysis is a green technology that is one of the most promising pathways to alleviating environmental contamination and the energy dilemma while adhering to sustainable and green chemistry principles. Photocatalysis involves photocatalytic activation with water under solar light irradiation (cheap, renewable and widely available energy) and is preferred for use in a wide range of processes such as organic pollutant mineralization, fine organic reactions, and also the production of hydrogen, which is a clean energy source (a zero-carbon fuel).

This Special Issue aims to publish promising recent advances in the photocatalysis field. Original research, reviews, and perspectives focusing on but not limited to the following scopes are all welcome:

  • The development of new photocatalytic materials, including semiconducting nanostructures, plasmonic photocatalysts, photocatalysts immobilized on substrates, hybrid composite photocatalysts, metal-free photocatalysts, etc.;
  • Improvements to photocatalytic activity through different concepts such as elemental doping, plasmonic effects, defect engineering, and the use of organic photosensitizers;
  • The application of photocatalytic processes for environmental purification (pollutants removal), renewable energy production (hydrogen generation), or organic synthesis;
  • Insights into the mechanism of photocatalysis and the influence of environmental factors on photocatalysis performance.

Dr. Andreea L. Chibac-Scutaru
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Molecular Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. There is an Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal. For details about the APC please see here. Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • semiconducting nanostructures
  • photocatalyst immobilized on substrates
  • hybrid composites
  • metal-free photocatalyst
  • photocatalysis mechanism
  • pollutant removal
  • hydrogen production
  • organic synthesis

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

10 pages, 2691 KiB  
Article
First-Principles Study of the Consequences of Cerium Doping on the Photocatalytic Activity of Zinc Oxide
by Eimy Y. Rodriguez-Mena, Luis A. Alcalá-Varilla and José D. Ortiz-Romero
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2024, 25(23), 13033; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms252313033 - 4 Dec 2024
Viewed by 663
Abstract
Recent experimental studies have shown that the photocatalytic activity of zinc oxide is enhanced when doped with cerium and that these enhancements depend on the doping concentration; in particular, the highest photocatalytic activity rates have been reported for cerium concentrations in zinc oxide [...] Read more.
Recent experimental studies have shown that the photocatalytic activity of zinc oxide is enhanced when doped with cerium and that these enhancements depend on the doping concentration; in particular, the highest photocatalytic activity rates have been reported for cerium concentrations in zinc oxide close to 3.00% or 5.00%. So far, there is no sufficient explanation why the maximum photocatalytic activity rates of cerium-doped zinc oxide occur for the above concentrations. The main objective of this work is to try explain the above-mentioned. For this purpose, we performed a study based on density functional theory on the effects generated on the structural and electronic properties of different cerium concentrations in zinc oxide, and found that the relative position of the fermi level (closeness to the valence band) could be related to the peaks of a higher photocatalytic activity of Zn1−xCexO. We also found that for a low cerium concentration rate, the value of the c lattice parameter became lower than the value it had in pure ZnO, while the value of the a lattice parameter of the Zn1−xCexO system was always higher than the value observed in pure ZnO. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Photocatalysis: An Innovation in Catalysis)
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20 pages, 6816 KiB  
Article
Eco-Friendly g-C3N4/Carboxymethyl Cellulose/Alginate Composite Hydrogels for Simultaneous Photocatalytic Degradation of Organic Dye Pollutants
by Ksenija Milošević, Davor Lončarević, Melina Kalagasidis Krušić, Milica Hadnađev-Kostić and Jasmina Dostanić
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2024, 25(14), 7896; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms25147896 - 19 Jul 2024
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1658
Abstract
The presented study was focused on the simple, eco-friendly synthesis of composite hydrogels of crosslinked carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC)/alginate (SA) with encapsulated g-C3N4 nanoparticles. The structural, textural, morphological, optical, and mechanical properties were determined using different methods. The encapsulation of g-C [...] Read more.
The presented study was focused on the simple, eco-friendly synthesis of composite hydrogels of crosslinked carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC)/alginate (SA) with encapsulated g-C3N4 nanoparticles. The structural, textural, morphological, optical, and mechanical properties were determined using different methods. The encapsulation of g-C3N4 into CMC/SA copolymer resulted in the formation of composite hydrogels with a coherent structure, enhanced porosity, excellent photostability, and good adhesion. The ability of composite hydrogels to eliminate structurally different dyes with the same or opposite charge properties (cationic Methylene Blue and anionic Orange G and Remazol Brilliant Blue R) in both single- and binary-dye systems was examined through adsorption and photocatalytic reactions. The interactions between the dyes and g-C3N4 and the negatively charged CMC/SA copolymers had a notable influence on both the adsorption capacity and photodegradation efficiency of the prepared composites. Scavenger studies and leaching tests were conducted to gain insights into the primary reactive species and to assess the stability and long-term performance of the g-C3N4/CMC/SA beads. The commendable photocatalytic activity and excellent recyclability, coupled with the elimination of costly catalyst separation requirements, render the g-C3N4/CMC/SA composite hydrogels cost-effective and environmentally friendly materials, and strongly support their selection for tackling environmental pollution issues. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Photocatalysis: An Innovation in Catalysis)
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