Electrospun silk fibroin/TiO2 mats. Preparation, characterization and efficiency for the photocatalytic solar treatment of pesticide polluted water

Abstract

The photocatalytic properties of silk fibroin (SF) incorporating TiO₂ nanoparticles using an electrospinning technique were examined. Electrospun SF/TiO₂ mats were successfully prepared and characterized by different techniques (XRD, FE-SEM, XPS, XDS, FTIR and BET). The photocatalytic efficiency of these materials were assessed by their ability to degrade four pesticides (boscalid, hexythiazox, pyraclostrobin and trifloxystrobin) in water exposed to solar irradiation. The effect of catalyst loading on the disappearance kinetics of the different pesticides was studied in order to determine the maximum degradation efficiency. The degradation rate significantly increases upon adding the TiO₂. However, no significant differences (p < 0.05) were observed when the TiO₂ loading was increased from 25 to 50 mg for most compounds. Thus, SF mats with 25 mg of TiO₂ were selected. Therefore, a new and simple approach to produce materials with photocatalytic activity, safety and potential application in the purification of water contaminated by pesticides has been developed.