Graphitic carbon nitride loaded on powdered mesoporous silica nanoparticles for photocatalytic tetracycline antibiotic degradation under UV-C light irradiation

Tetracycline (TC) is the second most common group of antibiotics in terms of production and consumption worldwide. This study was an experimental-applied research that was conducted discontinuously in a laboratory scale with the aim of synthesizing and characterizing graphite-silica carbon nitride nanocomposite in the photocatalytic removal of TC in the presence of ultraviolet light. In this study, graphite-silica carbon nitride nanocomposite was first synthesized and its properties were characterized using various techniques. Then, the effect of various parameters such as pH, amount of synthesized nanocomposite, initial tetracycline concentration and contact time on the photocatalytic removal of tetracycline by this nanocomposite was investigated. Based on the obtained results, it was found that the highest removal efficiency (92.98%) was obtained at pH = 3, the dose of nanocatalyst of 0.2 g/L, reaction time of 120 min and the initial TC concentration of 10 mg/L. According to the results, g-C3N4/KCC-1 nanocomposite has a high ability to degrade tetracycline in the UV/g-C3N4/KCC-1 photocatalytic process and, therefore, can be used as a suitable high efficiency option to remove tetracycline from aqueous solution.