Degradation of environmental pollutants using renewable solar energy is a low-cost and promising technology. Silver-loaded copper oxide microparticles (Ag/CuO) were prepared using a three-dimensional copper metal–organic framework Ag⁺/[Cu₂(nic)₄(H₂O)]_n (nic = nicotinic acid) as a precursor by the controlled thermal decomposition method and characterized by a variety of physical measurements. The Ag/CuO composites exhibited excellent visible-light-driven photocatalytic activity towards rhodamine B (RB) dye and alkali lignin. Under the catalysis of Ag/CuO composite, over 94% total organic carbon (TOC) removal of alkali lignin was obtained after irradiating for 5 h in an aqueous solution at room temperature. The effects of H₂O₂ dosage and initial pH on the photodegradation efficiency of alkali lignin were investigated in detail. Moreover, 17 phenolic intermediates were detected from the lignin degradation solution by GC–MS analysis. ·OH radicals were found to play the most important role in the photodegradation process. Finally, based on the experimental results, a reasonable mechanism was proposed to interpret the photodegradation process of alkali lignin. The excellent industrial lignin photodegradation performance makes Ag/CuO composites a promising catalyst to purify the paper-making wastewater.

Graphical abstract

Ag/CuO composite was prepared by calcining an Ag⁺-loaded Cu-MOF, which exhibited high catalytic activity in photodegradation of industrial lignin.

中文翻译：

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使用源自铜金属有机骨架的银氧化铜催化剂有效可见光诱导工业木质素光降解

利用可再生太阳能降解环境污染物是一项低成本且有前景的技术。采用三维铜金属有机骨架Ag ⁺ /[Cu ₂ (nic) ₄ (H ₂ O)] _{n制备载银氧化铜微粒(Ag/CuO)。}（nic=烟酸）作为前体，通过受控热分解方法进行表征，并通过各种物理测量进行表征。Ag/CuO 复合材料对罗丹明 B (RB) 染料和碱木质素表现出优异的可见光驱动光催化活性。在Ag/CuO复合物的催化下，水溶液中室温辐照5 h后，碱木质素的总有机碳（TOC）去除率超过94%。_{H 2} O ₂的影响详细研究了用量和初始pH值对碱木质素光降解效率的影响。此外，通过 GC-MS 分析，从木质素降解溶液中检测到 17 种酚类中间体。·OH自由基被发现在光降解过程中发挥着最重要的作用。最后，根据实验结果，提出了合理的机理来解释碱木质素的光降解过程。优异的工业木质素光降解性能使Ag/CuO复合材料成为净化造纸废水的有前途的催化剂。

图形概要

^{通过煅烧负载Ag +}的Cu-MOF制备了Ag/CuO复合材料，该复合材料在工业木质素的光降解中表现出较高的催化活性。