Construction of stable core–shell imprinted Ag-(poly-o-phenylenediamine)/CoFe2O4 photocatalyst endowed with the specific recognition capability for selective photodegradation of ciprofloxacin

A stable core–shell imprinted Ag-(poly-o-phenylenediamine)/CoFe2O4 (imprinted Ag-POPD/CoFe2O4) was synthesized via the surface imprinting technique. Ag-POPD was introduced into an imprinted layer, which significantly enhanced the photocatalytic activity. Meanwhile, due to the existence of imprinted cavities in the imprinted layer, the imprinted Ag-POPD/CoFe2O4 exhibited the superior specific recognition capability for selective photodegradation of ciprofloxacin (CIP). This work puts forward a novel design idea for synthesizing imprinted photocatalysts.