Flexible Bi2MoO6/N-doped carbon nanofiber membrane enables tetracycline photocatalysis for environmentally safe growth of Vigna radiata

Abstract

Photocatalysis technology has attracted great attention in the field of wastewater purification for plantation purposes. In the present work, we report the preparation, characterization, and application of flexible γ/γ′ -Bi2MoO6/N-doped carbon (Bi2MoO6/N-C) nanofiber membranes in tetracycline (TC) treatment and Vigna radiata growth. The phytotoxicity of degraded intermediates in treated water was evaluated for seed germination and growth of Vigna radiata. The as-prepared flexible Bi2MoO6/N-C homojunction nanofiber membrane, composed of subunits of γ-Bi2MoO6 nanoparticles and γ′ -Bi2MoO6 nanorods, showed strong visible-light harvesting capability, and good photogenerated electron-hole separation, which displayed the better photocatalytic efficacy in the TC treatment, in terms of degradation rate (97%, 60 min), and recyclability (4 cycles). Further, the germination and growth of Vigna radiata seeds were used to check the phytotoxicity level of the photocatalyst itself (0–10,000 mg/L), the treated and untreated TC solution. Phytotoxicity studies were undertaken via growing Vigna radiata in this Bi2MoO6/N-C photocatalyst solution and treated TC solution. The results demonstrated that Vigna radiata thrived in photocatalyst solution even at a high concentration of 10,000 mg/L and TC solution treated by the photocatalyst. Our work could afford an effective multifunctional photocatalyst for improving water quality for irrigation and plantation purposes.