Fabrication of Cu-MOFs derived nanofiber membranes for efficient removal of environmental pollutants†

Abstract

Globally, one of the most significant environmental issues is water pollution caused by industrial waste. In this paper, two novel copper-based metal–organic frameworks (Cu-MOFs) were constructed using 1,4-naphthalene dicarboxylic acid (1,4-H₂NDC) as the main ligand, along with N,N′-bis(pyridin-3-yl)cyclohexane-1,4-dicarboxamide (3-bcda) or N,N′-bis(3-pyridyl)adipamide (3-bpaa) as the secondary ligand using the hydrothermal method. Moreover, Cu-based derived materials (Cu-1-X and Cu-2-X, X = 600/800/1000) were prepared at different high temperatures using Cu-MOFs as the precursors. Furthermore, a series of homogeneous nanofiber membrane materials were prepared by sol–gel and electrospinning techniques using Cu-based derived materials. As a result, Cu-1-1000@PAN and Cu-2-1000@PAN catalysts exhibited high-efficiency photocatalytic degradation activity in the water purification process, especially for the photodegradation of gentian violet (GV), achieving degradation rates of 92.66% and 96.92%, respectively. Meanwhile, the degradation rate remained above 90% after five cycles. The pyrolysis temperature significantly impacted the photodegradation process by reducing the band gap and improving the degradation efficiency. This research presents an ecologically sustainable and practical solution for the removal of pollutants in water and the treatment of industrial wastewater.