Electrophoretic deposition of photocatalytic materials

Powdered photocatalytic materials have been successfully applied for the degradation of organic and inorganic pollutants as well as for hydrogen production and CO2 photo-reduction. However, the development of strategies for the preparation of photoactive coatings is a hot topic since it is a promising step for its use in photocatalytic reactors on an industrial scale. Electrophoretic deposition is a versatile technique capable to produce coatings of nanoparticles at a relative low cost and with an excellent quality and control of the deposited material. This work summarizes the fundamental aspects of the electrophoretic deposition process, as well as the latest contributions in the deposition of several photocatalytic materials including TiO2 and other UV-photocatalysts like ZnO, ZnS, SrTiO3 and PbMoO4 in addition to visible-light-driven photocatalysts such as Bi2O3, CdS, CdSe, g-C3N4, among others. Furthermore, the morphological features of the coatings along with the repercussion in the photocatalytic performance are issues discussed in the present review, based on the effect of the multiple parameters of the electrophoretic process such as the applied voltage, the deposition time, the inter-electrode distance, the concentration of the particles, the solvents and additives. [Display omitted] •The use of coatings plays a crucial role in the large-scale application of the photocatalysis.•The electrophoretic deposition (EPD) can control the exposed surface, cracking and roughness of a semiconductor coating.•This review summarizes the fundamental aspects of the EPD for the deposition of photocatalysts.•Photocatalytic applications of EPD coatings and future research are reviewed.