Preparation and performance of fluorescent-assisted photocatalytic self-cleaning coatings for enhanced NO degradation

Long afterglow materials have been utilized to reduce the dependence of photocatalytic air purification technology on light sources, but research on the synergistic application of light storage and visible light catalytic materials in self-cleaning coatings is limited. In this work, stable visible light catalytic material, (C 3 N 4 /Bi 2 WO 6 ), was selected as the catalytic material. The afterglow powder mainly composed of strontium aluminate (SA) was used as a light storage material. A ternary composite photocatalytic material SA/C 3 N 4 /Bi 2 WO 6 (SCBW) was prepared, which can work in both light and dark environments. Epoxy resin was introduced to construct coatings containing SCBW (CSCB). The high catalytic activity of SCBW is attributed to the heterojunction effect of various semiconductors and the improved interface, resulting in a degradation rate of nitrogen oxides (NO) reaching 75 % and proving the degradation effect on formaldehyde aqueous solution and organic dyes. Additionally, the synergistic effect of fluorescence characteristics and photocatalytic ability endow the material with superior antibacterial properties, while the self-cleaning functionality of CSCB enhances the durability of the coating. Finally, the mechanism of fluorescence-assisted enhanced photocatalytic self-cleaning coating was discussed, providing insights into the design of multifunctional photocatalytic self-cleaning coatings for air purification and pollutant separation.