Euplectella aspergillum inspired PPAN@g-C3N4 fibrous membrane with abundant micro/nano pores for high-throughput wastewater purification

Integrating photocatalytic degradation and membrane separation is a crucial approach to water purification . Here, inspired by Euplectella aspergillum, we presented an electrospinning fibrous membrane containing polyacrylonitrile (PAN), graphitic carbon nitride (g-C 3 N 4 ) particles, and polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP). The g-C 3 N 4 particles undertook the task of photocatalytic degradation for various contaminants. The PVP molecules assumed the role of pore-forming agent for providing additional channels for high-throughput wastewater purification. Furthermore, the micro/nano porous structure of the PPAN@g-C 3 N 4 fibers promoted the exposure of the photocatalytic active center of the g-C 3 N 4 particles, improving the light absorption capacity and enhancing photocatalytic performance. Hence, the prepared PPAN@g-C 3 N 4 fibrous membrane possessed excellent separation properties for the oil/water mixture (53,555 ± 3241 L m −2 h −1 bar −1 ) and oil-in-water emulsion (103,689 ± 13,286 L m −2 h −1 bar −1 ), and maintained its initial separation performance after cyclic separation. Moreover, the membrane showed excellent photocatalytic performance for different pollutants, among which the photocatalytic efficiency of RhB , MB , and MG was about 100 %. After 7 consecutive photocatalytic degradation of RhB, the efficiency remained above 95 %. Meanwhile, the antibacterial efficiency was more than 87 %. The combination of high-throughput separation performance and excellent catalytic performance exemplifies its potential attractiveness for practical wastewater purification.