Biomass-Based Photocatalysts for Environmental Applications

Abstract

In recent years, advanced oxidation process has shown a new frontier environmental friendly and sustainable wastewater treatment technology to replace the conventional treatment methods. Heterogeneous photocatalysis is a promising approach in environmental remediation. Among the popular photocatalysts, semiconductor oxide photocatalysts have been widely explored due to their durability and chemical and physical properties. However, the practical application of semiconductor oxide is limited because of its expensive cost, large bandgap energy and rapid recombination of the photoinduced electron-hole pairs. This chapter addresses the main advancements in overcoming the barriers accompanied by pure semiconductor oxide by incorporating with biomass-derived carbonaceous materials for fabrication of effective visible light-responsive semiconductor oxide-based photocatalysts.