Bio-derived 1T-MoS2/C-based aerogel by synergistic solar evaporation and tetracyclines removal for efficient freshwater generation

Abstract

Tetracycline, a broad-spectrum antibiotic, has been widely used in disease treatment and other fields. However, due to the unreasonable use, tetracycline residue remains in water which eventually endangers human health. The green environmental protection, low-cost, and renewability biomass aerogel are highly attractive for the purification of tetracycline wastewater. Here, the flower-like 1T-MoS2 with S vacancies was uniformly grown on the supporting poplar catkin fibers-based biomass carbon matrix, which was constructed 3D porous aerogel by ice template method. The adsorption kinetics and adsorption isotherms model of MoS2/C-based aerogel for tetracycline in wastewater was investigated, revealing a maximum adsorption capacity of 124.4 mg g−1. More notably, the MoS2/C-based aerogel displayed excellent photothermal performance, which could synergistically raise the local temperature. The solar evaporation induced transpiration was able to accelerate the adsorption of tetracycline, owing to the endothermic behavior of tetracycline adsorption process. The MoS2/C-based aerogel attained an excellent water evaporation rate of 2.54 kg m−2 h−1 under one sun illumination, which is 11 times that of pure water. The solar purification prototype-based on MoS2/C-based aerogel could effectively remove tetracycline and generate freshwater. The freshwater production was about 33.6 kg m−2, and the tetracyclines were completed removed in the generation of condensed water on sunny days. The unique bifunctional capability of the MoS2/C-based aerogel paved a new strategy for tetracycline wastewater treatment and alleviated the dilemma of global water.