Amplification of photocatalytic degradation of antibiotics (amoxicillin, ciprofloxacin) by sodium doping in nano-crystallite hydroxyapatite

Abstract

In this research, we explain the production of sodium-doped hydroxyapatite (Na_HAp) via wet chemical precipitation, followed by crystal modification. To enhance its photocatalytic activity different % of (0.25, 0.5, 1, and 2) sodium doped into HAp crystal. It has been demonstrated that doping is an effective method for modifying the properties of nanomaterials, such as their optical performance and chemical reactivity. Several instrumental approaches were used to characterize this newly synthesized sodium-doped HAp (Na_HAp), e.g. scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and UV-vis spectrometry were used to analyze the morphology, elemental composition, crystal structure, and optical bandgap, respectively. Under sunlight irradiation, the new Na_HAp photocatalyst was put to use in the process of degrading pharmaceutical pollutants such as antibiotics (amoxicillin and ciprofloxacin). It was found that using a 0.1 g dose of 1% Na_HAp under specified conditions, such as a pH of 7 and 120 minutes of sunlight irradiation, resulted in degradation percentages of 60% and 41.59% for amoxicillin and ciprofloxacin, respectively. Different radical scavengers were utilized to determine the reaction mechanism for the photochemical degradation of antibiotics. Additionally, the ability to be reused and the stability of 1% Na_HAp, a newly developed photocatalyst, were assessed. Therefore, this research adds to our understanding of how to optimize redox capacity for the rapid breakdown of a variety of antibiotics when exposed to sunlight.