Fabrication of boron nitride decorated NH2-MIL-53(Fe) for efficient removal of typical antibiotics

Antibiotic pollution in water needs to be effectively addressed as it can potentially harm to human health and the environment. Herein, the photocatalyst composites of boron nitride (BN) decorated NH2-MIL-53(Fe)(Fe-MOF53), i.e. BN/Fe-MOF53, were developed for the removal of tetracycline (TC) and oxytetracycline (OTC). Note that 20BN/Fe-MOF53 demonstrated favorable photocatalytic performance with TC and OTC degradation rates of 83.3% and 80.4%, respectively. In particular, photocatalytic cycling test demonstrated that 20BN/Fe-MOF53 composite has good stability. Characterization analysis displayed that BN promotes the separation of photogenerated electrons and holes in Fe-MOF53, and provides additional reaction sites to react with the pollutant molecules by increasing the specific surface area of the material. Moreover, electron spin resonance (ESR) technology displayed the main active group including ·OH, h+ and ·O2−. Finally, the conceivable photo-degradation principles for eliminating of TCs was proposed. This study provides a novel insight for synthesizing photocatalysts that can be utilized for the efficient degradation of antibiotics. •The photocatalyst composites of boron nitride (BN) decorated NH2-MIL-53(Fe) (BN/Fe-MOF53) were prepared.•BN promotes the separation of photogenerated electrons and holes in NH2-MIL-53(Fe).•The BN/Fe-MOF53 catalysts displayed excellent photodegradation of tetracycline (TC) and oxytetracycline (OTC).••O2−, h+ and •OH showed synergistic effects in the photodegradation process.