Solar-photocatalytic degradation of paracetamol using Zeolite/Fe3O4/CuS/CuWO4 p-n heterojunction: Synthesis, characterization and its application

In this research, a p-n heterojunction of CuS with CuWO₄, Fe₃O₄, and zeolite was utilized to enhance the photocatalytic elimination of acetaminophen (ACT) from water. Acetaminophen, recognized as a persistent organic pollutant of growing environmental concern, was targeted for removal. A ternary nanocomposite of zeolite/Fe₃O₄/CuS/CuWO₄, responsive to solar energy, was successfully synthesized and characterized using various techniques, such as XRD, FTIR, EDS, SEM, AFM, TEM, VSM, DRS, PL, BET, EDS mapping, and UV–vis spectroscopy. In this study, acetaminophen (ACT) photocatalytic removal from water was improved by employing a p-n heterojunction of CuS with CuWO₄, Fe₃O₄, and zeolite. The study focused on studying important parameters such as ACT concentration, catalyst dosage, and pH to optimize photocatalysis conditions. Acetaminophen photocatalytic degradation efficiency of 95.76 % was reached under optimized conditions of 10 mg/L ACT concentration, pH 6.8, 2 g/L catalyst dosage, and 180 min of sun irradiation. The elimination percentage of total organic carbon was determined to be 68.43 %, which was an improvement over employing bare zeolite, CuS, and CuWO₄ individually. Furthermore, even after the sixth cycle of acetaminophen photodegradation, the synthesized composite demonstrated outstanding reusability, with a photodegradation efficiency of 61.46 %.