Design of Photocatalysts for Removal of Contaminations in Water

The rapid development of the water treatment industry, including photocatalytic water treatment technology, provides a higher demand. The low quantum efficiency of catalyst hinders the substantial increase in its catalytic activity. Factors affecting the photocatalytic efficiency include the degree of crystallinity of the semiconductor itself, size, defects and band structure. In addition, the different crystal surface atomic arrangement of the catalyst lead to their different electronic structure, then catalytic activity is different. Based on the band matching theory, the lattice matching theory and theories of crystal growth, the photocatalyst can be designed to prepare the different nature of the catalyst electron-hole spatial separation to improve the efficiency of electron-hole separation, and to improve the photocatalytic performance. This article aims to summarize the methods and technologies routes that prepare the photocatalyst with higher photocatalytic activity, provide a reference for basic research related to the photocatalytic water treatment technology.