ANR - Development of near-infrared mediated photocatalytic nanocomposites for the treatment of turbid wastewater

由几个稠合苯环组成的多环芳烃(PAHs)是碳氢化合物不完全燃烧的产物，也是在加拿大广泛使用的水力压裂技术的返回物。随着几项研究证明多环芳烃对人类和野生动物的毒性和/或致癌性，人们对多环芳烃污染废水的担忧有所增加。然而，加拿大石油产量的预期增长假设受污染的水也有同样的增长。这表明需要迫切注意有效处理废水中的多环芳烃，因为这些污染物对水生生态系统的潜在公共健康影响正成为一个需要解决的严重关切。由于紫外光的穿透深度有限，传统的基于紫外光的光催化已被证明在这些混浊的废水介质中无效。因此，对开发更有效、更具成本效益的技术以降解多环芳烃等污染物的需求很大。在这种背景下，近红外(NIR)活化的光催化过程被认为是一种更通用的光催化介导的处理浑浊废水的方法。拟议的项目包括一个加拿大团队(INRS-EMT-F.Vetrone)和一个法国团队(UniversityéPierre&Marie Curie，表面反应实验室-G.Costentin，J.Blanchard和S.Boujday(隶属于新加坡南大，T.Steele实验室)/巴黎南大学，物理化学实验室-C.Colbeau-Justin)之间的合作，旨在合成新型和创新的光催化纳米复合材料，将基于镧系元素的上转换纳米颗粒(UCNPs)与氧化锌光催化剂相结合。其中，UCNP在近红外激发下的紫外光发射将触发氧化锌的光催化活性，从而导致污染物的分解。这种新颖和创新的方法将优于目前的方法，因为近红外介导的原位紫外光产生将克服紫外光的有限穿透。我们预计，这将带来一个更有效率和更具成本效益的废水处理系统，并将在水务行业产生重大影响。

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) consisting of several fused benzene rings are found as products of the incomplete combustion of hydrocarbons as well as in the flowback from hydraulic fracturing, a technique widely used in Canada. Concerns have risen about PAH-contaminated wastewaters as several studies have proven their toxicity and/or carcinogenicity to humans and wildlife. Yet, the expected increase in oil production in Canada assumes an equal increase in contaminated water. This reveals the urgent attention needed for the effective treatment of PAHs in wastewaters as the potential public health impact of these contaminants in the aquatic ecosystem is becoming a serious concern that needs to be addressed. Conventional ultraviolet (UV) light based photocatalysis has proved to be ineffectual in these turbid wastewater media due to limited penetration depth of UV light. As a consequence, there is a significant demand for the development of more efficient, cost-effective technologies to degrade pollutants such as PAHs. In this context, near-infrared (NIR) activation of the photocatalytic process is suggested as a more versatile method of photocatalysis mediated treatment of turbid wastewaters. The proposed project involves the collaborative effort between a Canadian team (INRS-EMT - F. Vetrone) and a French team (Université Pierre & Marie Curie, Laboratory of Surface Reactivity - G. Costentin, J. Blanchard, and S. Boujday (co-affiliated to NTU, Singapore, laboratory of T. Steele) / Université Paris Sud, Laboratory of Physical Chemistry - C. Colbeau-Justin) aiming for the synthesis of new and innovative photocatalytic nanocomposites combining lanthanide-based upconverting nanoparticles (UCNPs) with a ZnO photocatalyst. Herein, the UV emission upon NIR excitation of the UCNPs will trigger the photocatalytic activity of the ZnO resulting in pollutant breakdown. This novel and innovative approach will be superior to current methodologies, as the limited penetration of UV light will be overcome by NIR-mediated in-situ UV generation. We expect that it will lead to a more efficient and cost-effective system for wastewater treatment and will create significant impact in the water industry.