Fotocatalizadores carbón-TiO2 para purificación de aguas: revisión

[EN] The outstanding properties of graphene and graphene based materials have stimulated the interest in the design of high-performance photocatalysts that might be integrated in diverse applications as water/wastewater treatment. The present work overviews some important aspects of graphene-based TiO2 photocatalysts, such as methods of synthesis, associated photocatalytic mechanisms and applications for the photocatalytic degradation of pollutants. Graphene oxide-TiO2 (GOTiO 2) composites were prepared by the liquid phase deposition method and their catalytic activity was compared with that obtained by analogues prepared with carbon nanotubes and fullerenes. Finally, the immobilization of GO-TiO2 on polymeric fibres and ceramic membranes was also assessed to aim at technological applications.[ES] Las extraordinarias propiedades de grafeno y sus derivados han suscitado el interés en el diseño de fotocatalizadores de alto rendimiento, que puedan ser usados en diversas aplicaciones como el tratamiento de aguas. Este trabajo trata sobre algunos aspectos importantes de fotocatalizadores basados en grafeno y TiO2, tales como métodos de síntesis, mecanismos de reacción y aplicaciones para la degradación fotocatalítica de contaminantes. Compuestos de óxido de grafeno-TiO2 (GO-TiO2) fueron preparados por deposición en fase líquida y su actividad catalítica fue comparada con otros compuestos carbon-TiO2 preparados con nanotubos de carbono y fulerenos. Finalmente, se estudió la inmovilización de GO-TiO2 en fibras poliméricas y membranas para aplicaciones tecnológicas.Financial support for this work was provided by projects PTDC/AAC-AMB/122312/2010 co-financed by FCT (Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia) and FEDER (ERDF – European Regional Development Fund) through Programme COMPETE (FCOMP-01- 0124-FEDER-019503). This work was also partially co-financed by FCT and FEDER through project PEst-C/EQB/LA0020/2013 (COMPETE), and by QREN, ON2 (North Portugal Regional Operational Programme) and FEDER through projects NORTE- 07-0162-FEDER-000050, NORTE-07-0162- FEDER-000015 and NEPCAT (nr. 38900) in the National Strategic Reference Framework (NSRF). LMPM and SMT acknowledge financial support from FCT grants SFRH/BPD/88964/2012 and SFRH/ BPD/74239/2010, respectively. Prof. J.L. Faria, Prof. J.L. Figueiredo and Dr. A.M.T. Silva are gratefully acknowledged for their assistance in the revision of the manuscript.Peer reviewe