Loading CuFe2O4 onto ceramic fabric for photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue under visible light irradiation

Recycling of photocatalyst in wastewater treatment is a big challenge. Fixation of photocatalyst on a flexible surface of solid substrates is a promising solution. In this work, copper ferrite (CuFe2O4) particles were loaded onto polydopamine (pDA) pretreated ceramic/polyester fabrics (CPF) via coprecipitation. The CPF not only acts as loading material for CuFe2O4 particles, but also makes this photocatalyst convenient to recycle. The morphology, elemental composition and structure of the as-fabricated CPF/CuFe2O4 were characterized by scanning electron microscope (SEM), Fourier transform Infrared (FT-IR) spectrometer, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and X-ray diffractometer (XRD). The degradation rate of methylene blue (MB) by the CPF/CuFe2O4 photocatalyst reached to 98.2% under visible light irradiation for 80 min, reflecting the excellent photocatalytic activity of the composites. The CPF/CuFe2O4 demonstrated good photostability and recoverability, indicating its great potential in wastewater treatment. Moreover, the degradation mechanism and possible degradation pathway of MB by CPF/CuFe2O4 photocatalyst were investigated.