Abstract
This research investigated the production of porous zinc oxide (ZnO) ceramics obtained by the replica method for water depollution by photocatalytic processes. Five photo-decolorization cycles were performed to analyze the reuse potential of the ceramics. Statistical analyses using R programming were conducted to investigate possible significant differences between them. The ceramics porosities were between 46.74 and 62.50% (depending on the composition). The most successful results were achieved in prepared ceramics from slurries containing 65% ZnO and 1% carboxymethylcellulose, in which the dye decolorization results reached 90.5% after 5 cycles, indicating a high reuse potential of these ceramics. Multivariate analysis proved the negative effect of increasing the heat treatment temperature on the evaluated properties. The best processing conditions to obtain porous ZnO ceramics by the replica technique were established through statistical tools, with very satisfactory results in the photo-decolorization potential of the investigated dye.
Highlights
The presence of dyes in water sources and their threat to biota can be proven through ecotoxicological tests
The thermal evaluation of the foam enabled an adequate configuration of the heating ramp used in the heat treatment of the different compositions, which aimed to ensure the integrity of the zinc oxide (ZnO) ceramics after foam elimination
The replica technique investigated in this work enabled the production of ZnO ceramics with high porosity
Summary
The presence of dyes in water sources and their threat to biota can be proven through ecotoxicological tests. Dyes can highly compromise the quality of water (about 100 μg L-1) This amount is significant enough to cause the death of organisms such as water fleas and inhibit the growth of freshwater algae. These organisms are responsible for oxygen release, playing an important role in the maintenance of the system where they are inserted[1,2]. The problem of dyes is aggravated by the fact that such compounds are not eliminated by conventional waste treatments[3,4] Alternative techniques such as advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) are required. These are based on the generation of highly oxidizing species establishing favorable conditions for the degradation of such polluting substances[5,6,7]
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