Photothermal Process Research Articles

Current Advances in the Photoconversion of Plastics: the Catalysts and Reaction Pathways.

Plastic waste has caused severe global environmental pollution and health issues due to the high production rate and lack of proper disposal technology. Traditional methods to deal with plastic waste, such as incineration and landfilling, are deemed unsustainable and energy-intensive. A promising alternative is the photocatalytic conversion of plastic waste, using sunlight as a sustainable and carbon-neutral energy source to break down plastic waste under ambient pressure and low temperatures. This review aims to provide a comprehensive summary of recent advancements in plastic photoconversion, with an emphasis on the catalysts and reaction pathways. The mechanisms and reaction pathways are first summarized, followed by a detailed discussion of strategies to design catalysts for improved performance in photoconversion. Then, examples of photothermal degradation processes are presented. Finally, current strategies, challenges, and possible future directions of plastic photoconversion are summarized and discussed.

Photothermal Catalytic Degradation of VOCs: Mode，System and Application.

Human production and living processes emit excessive VOCs into the atmosphere, posing significant threats to both human health and the environment. The photothermal catalytic oxidation process is an organic combination of photocatalysis and thermocatalysis. Utilizing photothermal catalytic degradation of VOCs can achieve better catalytic activity at lower temperatures, resulting in more rapid and thorough degradation of these compounds. Photothermal catalysis has been increasingly applied in the treatment of atmospheric VOCs due to its many advantages. A brief introduction on the three modes of photothermal catalysis is presented. Depending on the main driving force of the reactions, they can be categorized into thermal-assisted photocatalysis (TAPC),photo-assisted thermal catalysis (PATC) and photo-driven thermal catalysis (PDTC). The commonly used catalyst design methods and reactor types for photothermal catalysis are also briefly introduced. This paper then focuses on recent developments in specific applications for photothermal catalytic oxidation of different types of VOCs and their corresponding principles. Finally, the problems and challenges facing VOC degradation through this method are summarized, along with prospects for future research.

Photothermal impacts induced by laser pulse in a 2D semiconducting medium with temperature-dependent properties under strain–temperature rate-dependent theory

The purpose of this research is to introduce a new model for studying the photothermal process in a 2D semiconducting material with temperature-dependent properties using the recently modified Green and Lindsay theory. The surface absorption fashion generated by a laser pulse is used to heat a medium whose surface is subjected to cooling impact and considered traction free. The integral transformation method is used to attain a general solution via Fourier and Laplace transforms, and the inverse Laplace transform is performed numerically using Riemann sum approximation. A silicon element is utilized to get findings that are graphically displayed as an application in which the consistency of outcomes may be deduced.

Nonlinear Thermoplasmonics in Graphene Nanostructures.

The linear electronic dispersion relation of graphene endows the atomically thin carbon layer with a large intrinsic optical nonlinearity, with regard to both parametric and photothermal processes. While plasmons in graphene nanostructures can further enhance nonlinear optical phenomena, boosting resonances to the technologically relevant mid- and near-infrared (IR) spectral regimes necessitates patterning on ∼10 nm length scales, for which quantum finite-size effects play a crucial role. Here we show that thermoplasmons in narrow graphene nanoribbons can be activated at mid- and near-IR frequencies with moderate absorbed energy density, and furthermore can drive substantial third-harmonic generation and optical Kerr nonlinearities. Our findings suggest that photothermal excitation by ultrashort optical pulses offers a promising approach to enable nonlinear plasmonic phenomena in nanostructured graphene that avoids potentially invasive electrical gating schemes and excessive charge carrier doping levels.

Localized heating coupling with radical oxidation eliminating antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in interfacial photothermal Fenton-like disinfection process

Conventional oxidative disinfection processes are inefficient in eliminating intracellular antibiotic resistance genes (iARGs) due to the barrier of the cell membrane and the competitive reaction of cellular constituents within antibiotic-resistant bacteria (ARB), resulting in the widespread prevalence of ARGs in recycled water. This study presented the first application of localized heating coupling with advanced oxidation to destroy the resistant Escherichia coli cells and improved subsequent iARGs (blaTEM-1) degradation in a novel photothermal Fenton-like disinfection process. The Fe-Mn@CNT microfiltration membrane, comprising carbon nanotubes wrapped with Fe and Mn nanoparticles (Fe-Mn@CNT), was employed as a nanomaterial for photothermal conversion and H2O2 activation. The highly efficient absorption of full-spectrum photons by CNTs enabled the Fe-Mn@CNT membrane to concentrate light to generate localized intense heat, resulting in the destruction of ARB nearby, and the subsequent release of iARGs. Interfacial heat favored Fe-Mn-induced H2O2 activation, leading to the production of more ·OH, which in turn promoted the oxidation for ARG degradation and ARB cell damage. The results of the acetylcysteine quenching experiments indicated that interfacial heating and radical oxidation-induced accumulation of intracellular reactive oxygen species contributed to the elimination of about 1-log iARGs through direct attack. The integrity of the cell membrane, the morphology of ARB and the variation of i/e ARG copy numbers were observed to reveal that the introduction of interfacial heating aggravated the cell lysis and accelerated the iARGs release, resulting in the inactivation of 7.27-log ARB and the elimination of 4.64-log iARGs and 2.23-log eARGs. Localized heating coupling with ·OH oxidation achieved a 143 % increase in iARGs removal compared to the conventional Fenton-like oxidation. The interfacial photothermal Fenton-like disinfection process exhibited remarkable material stability, robust disinfection performance, and effective suppression of horizontal gene transfer, underscoring its immense potential to mitigate the risk of ARG dissemination in reclaimed water systems.

Investigating intermolecular interactions of surfactant solutions using femtosecond thermal lens spectroscopy

In this study, we examined the impact of various surfactants (oleic acid, butyric acid, Span-20, and CTAB) on the thermophysical properties of methanol (MeOH) using a femtosecond laser-induced thermal lens (TL) spectroscopic technique. Methanol was chosen for its unique convective properties under intense localized heating, making it a promising candidate for studying photothermal responses. We discovered that the TL characteristics of both pure methanol and methanol-surfactant mixtures are significantly influenced by the molecular interactions and physical properties of the components. Our experimental results indicate that the addition of surfactants notably alters the heat transfer dynamics of the solvent by restricting natural molecular movement and modifying thermal properties, which in turn affect the TL signatures. Beyond the surfactant concentration, we observed that the extent of variation in steady-state TL signals, inflection points, and heat transfer mechanisms depends on the molecular properties of the surfactants, such as chain length, the number of active (hydrophilic) groups per molecule, thermal conductivity, viscosity, and intermolecular interactions. Our TL findings provide a detailed investigation into the effect of surfactants on the photothermal response and heat transfer process of a solvent for the first time.

Innovative 3D Janus foam design achieves high-efficiency and stable solar desalination with improved salt resistance and heat management

SDIE technology is an effective means to address freshwater scarcity, but faces challenges such as thermal management, salt scale resistance, and high energy efficiency. Herein, a 3D Janus Foam with a hydrophobic surface layer and a hydrophilic inner layer was synthesized for efficient seawater desalination. Such strategic layering provides effective thermal management, resulting in a heat loss of only ∼1.13 % throughout the photothermal conversion process. The Janus Foam’s ability to prevent salt accumulation while maintaining high evaporation efficiency over extended periods is a critical improvement over current technology. Under 1 kW m−2, the evaporation rate of the Janus Foam is as high as 1.7898 kg m−2 h−1 with an efficiency of 96.87 %. Even under actual seawater conditions, the evaporation rate of the foam remains at 1.7426 kg m−2 h−1 with an efficiency of 91.83 %, demonstrating its high energy efficiency and adaptability to different operating environments. In conclusion, the innovative design of the 3D Janus foam offers a promising avenue for addressing global freshwater scarcity through enhanced solar interfacial evaporation processes.

Melanin and Light.

Melanin is responsible, in Nature, for photoprotection, for this reason it is expected to be poorly photoreactive. However, the photo-reactivity of melanin and related materials is well documented. Here we discuss some relevant recent examples to demonstrate that, indeed, the actual mechanism of interaction of melanin with light is complex and still not completely understood. Photochemical and photothermal processes are involved, giving a contribution that strongly depends on light wavelength and intensity. Moreover, some interesting experiments demonstrated that photochemical reactivity of melanin related compounds is likely to be indirect, in the sense that the effect of light is to increase the number of radical species rather than creating photoreactive excited state. These suggestions open-up new perspectives in the interpretation of the role of melanin in photoprotection and in the design of new melanin based photoactive materials for energy conversion, environmental remediation, and nanomedicine. Further complication is given by the role of atmospheric oxygen and humidity in the photoinduced processes. Beside this complexity of behavior makes it difficult a systematic understanding of the interaction of melanin with light, it surely strongly contributes to make the properties of melanin and related materials unique.

An efficient 3D tube-level flux-thermal model of external tubular receivers in solar power tower systems

Accurate and efficient radiative flux simulation and thermal analysis of liquid tubular receivers are essential for safe and stable operations of solar power tower systems. However, the complicated structure and photothermal processes on these receivers pose significant challenges for simulation. Although existing models have made great simplifications, the simulation results are still inefficient and inaccurate. To address these issues, a novel and universal 3D flux-thermal model is proposed. Firstly, a flux model is proposed via a tube-level Monte Carlo ray tracing method based on GPU parallel computing, enabling real-time and accurate radiative flux density distribution simulation for each absorber tube. Secondly, a high-resolution multi-tube thermal model is proposed, providing accurate 3D thermal analysis for each absorber tube. Through pre-factorization and highly parallelized designs, the proposed thermal model achieves a 600 times acceleration in efficiency, even with tens of millions of discrete elements. Finally, the novel flux-thermal model is validated against publicly published measured data from Solar Two, indicating a mean deviation of only 0.1% and a root mean square error of 0.006, demonstrating its high accuracy. Furthermore, the proposed flux-thermal model reveals complex and asymmetrical flux and temperature distributions on the absorber tube, in contrast to the symmetrical distributions obtained by the simplified models. Such inaccuracies in the simplified simulations may cause operational misjudgements and affect system safety potentially. Therefore, the proposed 3D tube-level flux-thermal model provides an accurate and efficient solution to radiative flux simulation and thermal analysis, enhancing the safe and stable operation of solar power tower systems.

Application of a UV nanosecond laser to the rapid and direct photothermal activation of Cu-BTC metal–organic frameworks

Activating metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) to create open coordination sites is crucial for exploiting the functions of MOFs. This study successfully demonstrates the direct activation of Cu-BTC crystals using rapid and efficient heat treatment assisted by a nanosecond pulse laser. Localized thermal energy was irradiated to the surfaces of the MOFs through a photothermal process, which rapidly and effectively removed solvent residues within the structures of the MOFs. The Cu-BTC crystals synthesized through the solvothermal method were activated through a photothermal process, without inducing any structural damage, by irradiating with the second harmonic of a Nd3+:Y3Al5O12 laser with a wavelength of 355 nm. This process occurred most efficiently without any structural collapse at 30 mJ/cm2, and the residues within the MOFs were removed through the photothermal process within approximately 5 min. Thus, the study offers a novel design strategy involving the rapid activation of MOFs.

Evaluation of the energy flow characteristics and efficiency of photothermal functional phase change materials for efficient solar thermal harvesting

Photothermal functional phase change materials (PCMs) have attracted considerable attention due to their large energy density, which can solve the inherent imbalance defects of solar energy. However, the efficiency determination of the PCM-based photothermal utilization process (including photon absorption, photothermal conversion, thermal storage, and thermal release) is still unclear, especially with different or even contradictory quantitative indexes for the same process, resulting in inaccurate photothermal utilization performance and unfair comparison in various efforts. Herein, we clarified the photothermal utilization sub-processes of phase change composites via optical characterizations and photothermal conversion experiments and highlighted the energy dissipation mechanism of photothermal conversion process by fluorescence and femtosecond transient absorption examination. Besides, the energy flow features of these sub-processes were explored by determining the energy flow and optical/thermal losses. More importantly, we standardized the efficiency of the four sub-processes by proposing evaluation indexes and established the relationship among the four sub-processes to derive the total photothermal utilization efficiency. This work provides a paradigm for a comprehensive investigation of PCM-based photothermal utilization systems, especially establishing consistent criteria for subsequent efficiency determination, laying a solid foundation for developing and quantifying solar thermal utilization systems.

A singular plasmonic-thermoelectric hollow nanostructure inducing apoptosis and cuproptosis for catalytic cancer therapy

Thermoelectric technology has recently emerged as a distinct therapeutic modality. However, its therapeutic effectiveness is significantly limited by the restricted temperature gradient within living organisms. In this study, we introduce a high-performance plasmonic-thermoelectric catalytic therapy utilizing urchin-like Cu2−xSe hollow nanospheres (HNSs) with a cascade of plasmonic photothermal and thermoelectric conversion processes. Under irradiation by a 1064 nm laser, the plasmonic absorption of Cu2−xSe HNSs, featuring rich copper vacancies (VCu), leads to a rapid localized temperature gradient due to their exceptionally high photothermal conversion efficiency (67.0%). This temperature gradient activates thermoelectric catalysis, generating toxic reactive oxygen species (ROS) targeted at cancer cells. Density functional theory calculations reveal that this vacancy-enhanced thermoelectric catalytic effect arises from a much more carrier concentration and higher electrical conductivity. Furthermore, the exceptional photothermal performance of Cu2−xSe HNSs enhances their peroxidase-like and catalase-like activities, resulting in increased ROS production and apoptosis induction in cancer cells. Here we show that the accumulation of copper ions within cancer cells triggers cuproptosis through toxic mitochondrial protein aggregation, creating a synergistic therapeutic effect. Tumor-bearing female BALB/c mice are used to evaluate the high anti-cancer efficiency. This innovative approach represents the promising instance of plasmonic-thermoelectric catalytic therapy, employing dual pathways (membrane potential reduction and thioctylated protein aggregation) of mitochondrial dysfunction, all achieved within a singular nanostructure. These findings hold significant promise for inspiring the development of energy-converting nanomedicines.

Near infrared photothermal inactivation of Candida albicans assisted by plasmonic nanorods

The use of photothermal processes has been proven effective in the control of microbial infections. Simultaneously, the localized surface plasmon resonance phenomena in metallic nanoparticles have been explored as an alternative strategy to achieve highly efficient localized heating. In this work, we propose the use of selected nanoheaters to improve the efficiency of fungal photothermal inactivation of Candida albicans through size optimization of plasmonic gold nanorods. Here, the optical heating of polyethylene glycol coated gold nanorods of varying sizes is evaluated, both theoretically and experimentally. A size-dependent computational approach was applied to identify metallic nanorods with maximized thermal performance at 800 nm, followed by the experimental comparison of optimal and suboptimal nanoheaters. Comparison among samples show temperatures of up to 53.0 °C for 41×10 nm gold nanorods against 32.3 °C for 90×25 nm, a percentage increase of ∼63% in photothermal inactivation assessments. Our findings reveal that gold nanorods of 41×10 nm exhibit superior efficiency in near-infrared (800 nm) photothermal inactivation of fungi, owing to their higher light-thermal conversion efficiency. The identification of high performance metallic nanoheaters may lead to the reduction of the nanoparticle dose used in plasmonic-based procedures and decrease the laser exposure time needed to induce cell death. Moreover, our results provide insights to better exploit plasmonic nanoparticles on photothermal inactivation protocols.

Combined non-destructive evaluation of the damage precursors in fused silica optics

Combined non-destructive evaluation methods for fused silica’s damage precursors including UV photothermal weak absorption, ultrafast fluorescence, steady-state fluorescence, Raman spectroscopy, and stress distribution, are proposed to explain the damage mechanism from multiple perspectives. The correlation between each non-destructive characterization method and damage behaviors is simultaneously verified, in general, the damage threshold test of R on 1. The results have shown that regions with high photothermal absorption are accompanied by low damage thresholds, because the photothermal conversion process is associated with laser-induced damage. The damage threshold is also lower at locations of bright ultrafast fluorescence signals with a lifetime ranging from 1.2∼3 ns, as ultrafast fluorescence is associated with high densities of defects. A complementary relationship between the distribution of ultrafast fluorescence and the distribution of photothermal absorption signals is constructed. This indicates that the steady-state fluorescence cannot accurately evaluate the precursor’s damage performance. Furthermore, Raman spectroscopy is utilized to identify the structural changes in bond lengths and angles, as well as locations of damages coinciding with stress distribution.

Unified modeling of photothermal and photochemical damage.

Correlating damage outcomes to a retinal laser exposure is critical for diagnosis and choosing appropriate treatment modalities. Therefore, it is important to understand the causal relationships between laser parameters, such as wavelength, power density, and length of exposure, and any resulting injury. Differentiating photothermal from photochemical processes in an in vitro retinal model using cultured retinal pigment epithelial cells would be a first step in achieving this goal. The first-order rate constant of Arrhenius has been used for decades to approximate cellular thermal damage. A modification of this equation, called the damage integral (Ω), has been used extensively to predict the accumulation of laser damage from photothermal inactivation of critical cellular proteins. Damage from photochemical processes is less well studied and most models have not been verified because they require quantification of one or more uncharacterized chemical species. Additionally, few reports on photochemical damage report temperature history, measured or simulated. We used simulated threshold temperatures from a previous in vitro study to distinguish between photothermal and photochemical processes. Assuming purely photochemical processes also inactivate critical cellular proteins, we report the use of a photothermal Ω and a photochemical Ω that work in tandem to indicate overall damage accumulation. The combined damage integral (ΩCDI) applies a mathematical switch designed to describe photochemical damage relative to wavelength and rate of photon delivery. Although only tested in an in vitro model, this approach may transition to predict damage at the mammalian retina.

Photothermal phase modulation in a gas-immersed optical nanofiber

We report the observation and theoretical analysis of photothermal phase modulation in an optical nanofiber (NF) immersed in light-absorbing gas. The phase modulation arises from the contrasting photothermal processes experienced by the mode field within and outside the NF, which exhibits significant wavelength and pressure dependence in the nanoscale waveguides. By designing the diameter of the NF, the photothermal phase modulation can be readily controlled, and a nullification of phase modulation is achieved at a specific wavelength. Experiments on NFs with different diameters demonstrated pressure-controllable phase modulation up to 0.058π rad/mW, potentially allowing the development of nanoscale all-optical modulators and sensors with optimal performance.

(Invited) From Inside Out: How Synthesis-Structure Correlations Conspire to Determine Photoluminescence Traits and Operational Robustness in Non-Blinking Giant Quantum Dots

“Giant” or thick-shell core/shell quantum dots (gQDs) are an important class of solid-state quantum emitter. Without any encapsulation gQDs are characterized by strongly suppressed blinking, or even non-blinking behavior, and resistance to photobleaching at room temperature. In addition, non-radiative Auger processes are significantly reduced in this class of luminescent nanomaterial. Together, these qualities lead to novel functionality as photon sources for a range of ensemble and single-emitter applications, including down-conversion phosphors, direct excitation light-emitting diodes, single-biomolecule tracking, and single-photon generation. For many applications, operation at elevated temperature and under intense photon flux is also desired, and we have shown that gQDs outperform other emitters in this key metric of operational robustness. Interestingly, performance under these conditions is strongly dependent on the synthetic method employed for shell growth. Previously we revealed the mechanistic pathways responsible for thermally-assisted photodegradation, distinguishing effects of hot-carrier trapping and QD charging (ACS Nano 2018, 12, 5, 4206), and subsequently used solid-state spectroscopy to obtain kinetic and thermodynamic parameters of the photothermal degradation process (ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces 2020, 12, 27, 30695). Here, I will discuss a comprehensive analysis of gQD structural properties from the inside of the nanocrystal to its surface and demonstrate correlations between specific structural features and both causal synthetic parameters and resulting performance metrics. Two synthetic methods—successive-ionic-layer-adsorption-and-reaction and high-temperature continuous-injection—will be compared. Investigated structural features will include interfacial alloying, stacking-fault density and surface-ligand identity, while correlated functionalities will address quantum yield, single-gQD photoluminescence under thermal/photo-stress, charging behavior and quantum-optical properties. I will show several unexpected conclusions, including the surprising finding that while interfacial alloying is the strongest indicator of gQD stability under stress, the parameter is not the determining factor for Auger suppression. Furthermore, quantum yield is strongly influenced by surface chemistry and can approach unity even in the case of a gQD comprising a thick shell with a high defect density with proper choice of excitation wavelength. Interestingly, we find a strong correlation between the existence of zinc-blende stacking faults and whether the gQD exhibits charged-state or purely excitonic emission, and the interplay between charged emission and excitonic emission can be precisely tuned by “mixing” shell-growth methods (Small Sci. 2023,3, 2300092).

Probing Electrocatalytic Synergy in Graphene/MoS2/Nickel Networks for Water Splitting through a Combined Experimental and Theoretical Lens.

The development of low-cost and active electrocatalysts signifies an important effort toward accelerating economical water electrolysis and overcoming the sluggish hydrogen or oxygen evolution reaction (HER or OER) kinetics. Herein, we report a scalable and rapid synthesis of inexpensive Ni and MoS2 electrocatalysts on N-doped graphene/carbon cloth substrate to address these challenges. Mesoporous N-doped graphene is synthesized by using electrochemical polymerization of polyaniline (PANI), followed by a rapid one-step photothermal pyrolysis process. The N-doped graphene/carbon cloth substrate improves the interconnection between the electrocatalyst and substrate. Consequently, Ni species deposited on an N-doped graphene OER electrocatalyst shows a low Tafel slope value of 35 mV/decade at an overpotential of 130 mV at 10 mA/cm2 current density in 1 M KOH electrolytes. In addition, Ni-doped MoS2 on N-doped graphene HER electrocatalyst shows Tafel slopes of 37 and 42 mV/decade and overpotentials of 159 and 175 mV, respectively, in acidic and alkaline electrolytes at 10 mA/cm2 current density. Both these values are lower than recently reported nonplatinum-group-metal-based OER and HER electrocatalysts. These excellent electrochemical performances are due to the high electrochemical surface area, a porous structure that improves the charge transfer between electrode and electrolytes, and the synergistic effect between the substrate and electrocatalyst. Raman spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and density functional theory (DFT) calculations demonstrate that the Ni hydroxide species and Ni-doped MoS2 edge sites serve as active sites for OER and HER, respectively. Finally, we also evaluate the performance of the HER electrocatalyst in commercial alkaline electrolyzers.

A sustainable MXene/PVA/CNFs@Fabric roll-based 3D photothermal evaporator integrating efficient evaporation and anti-pollution design

Solar-driven interface evaporation is an effective approach towards achieving clean seawater desalination. The focus of research in this field lies in attaining sustained, stable, and efficient steam generation during the photothermal evaporation process. In this study, the proposed MPFR evaporator featured a 3D spiral conical groove design combined with a hydrophilic MXene/PVA/CNFs functional layer, which effectively enhanced light absorption (>97 %) through multistage reflection and absorption. This facilitated a body-phase absorption/body-phase heating process that effectively reduced the surface temperature of the illuminated area compared to a flat evaporator. Consequently, this was conducive to the absorption of environmental heat to supply water evaporation. Under 1.0 sun illumination, the evaporation rate and evaporation efficiency of MPFR-4 evaporator reached 3.84 kg m−2·h−1 and 156.29 % respectively. The introduction of the hydrophilic functional layer not only enabled water activation but also enhanced the water supply capacity of both yarn and fabric on the evaporator surface, forming a water layer that promoted high-salinity water diffusion and salt crystal dissolution while effectively inhibiting salt crystal pollution. Moreover, this water layer imparted oil-repellent characteristics to the evaporator, enabling it to resist oil-pollution from sea surfaces as well. Thus, this work provided novel insights into designing highly efficient and anti-pollution solar thermal evaporators that drove advancements within green and sustainable water generation.

Insight into the photothermal boosted ofloxacin removal by magnetic CuFe2O4/pyrite waste catalyst: Mechanism, degradation pathways, and toxicity evaluation

The widespread distribution of antibiotics in natural waters has raised global concerns due to their potential threat to the aquatic environment. In this study, 40 %-CuFe2O4/pyrite waste composite material was constructed for the removal of ofloxacin (OFX) through activating H2O2 in photothermal Fenton processes. It had excellent photothermal conversion performance and could serve as a superior photothermal-Fenton catalyst. The removal efficiency of OFX was 96.13 % in the photothermal Fenton reaction, and the apparent first-order kinetics rate constant (k) was 4.33 and 12.15 times higher than in the traditional Fenton without light and 40 %-Fe/PW photothermal Fenton reaction. This could be attributed to the introduction of photothermal effect promoted collisions between substances, and expedited the reaction rate. The redox cycle of Fe(II)/Fe(III) and Cu(I)/Cu(II) in the Cu-Fe bimetal system also contributed to the removal of OFX. Besides, it exhibited excellent cycling stability, extensive adaptability for various pollutants and water properties. The order of contribution of active radicals to the removal of OFX was ∙ OH>h+ >∙O2-, and they attacked the active atoms of OFX molecule with high Fukui index. Hopefully, this study may encourage the utilization of the photothermal effect for contaminant removal and introduce a novel perspective for environmental remediation.