Authors
- Xing Feng
Guangdong University of Technology ,
- Ying Li ,
- Zhen Hu ,
- Qingsong Wang ,
- mengsi chem ,
- Haoke Zhang ,
- Miaomiao Kang ,
- zheng zhao ,
- Md. Monarul Islam ,
- Jun Zhang ,
- Ye Xiao ,
- Menglong Zhang ,
- Carl Redshaw ,
- Qing Chen ,
- Sheng Xie ,
- Jacky W. Y. Lam ,
- Ben Zhong Tang
Abstract
Both the variety and uniqueness of organic semiconductors has contributed to the rapid development of environmental engineering applications and renewable fuel production, typified by photo-degradation of organic pollutants or water splitting. This paper presents a rare example of an aggregation-induced emission luminogen (AIEgen) as a highly efficient photo-catalyst for pollutant decomposition in an environmentally relevant application. Under irradiation, the tetraphenylethene-based AIEgen (TPE-Ca) exhibited high photo-degradation efficiency of up to 98.7% of Rhodaminein (RhB) in aqueous solution. The possible photocatalytic mechanism was studied by electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) spectra, electrochemistry, thermal imaging technology, ultra-performance liquid chromatography and high-definition mass spectrometry (UPLC/HDMS), as well as by density functional theory (DFT) calculations. Cytotoxicity experiments indicated that the final photo-catalytic degradation products show biocompatibility. Among the many diverse AIEgens, this is the first AIEgen to be developed as a photo-catalyster of organic pollutants. This research will open up new avenues for AIEgens research, particularly for applications of environmental relevance.
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