Metal–organic framework-based materials: emerging high-efficiency catalysts for the heterogeneous photocatalytic degradation of pollutants in water

Water pollution has become one of the most important global environmental pollution problems, wherein various toxic and persistent organic pollutants in water pose a major threat to the environment. Significantly, photocatalysis is considered an efficient technique, demonstrating great advantages for the removal of organic pollutants for wastewater treatment. Lately, metal–organic frameworks (MOFs), which are a group of organic–inorganic hybrid materials possessing an outstanding pore structure, adsorption capacity, and photocatalytic property, have demonstrated great promise as effective photocatalysts. Significant progress has been achieved in the application of MOFs for the degradation of organic pollutants, and thus they have attracted widespread attention from the research community and industry. This review aims to summarize the recent advances in the preparation and strategies for the modification of MOF-based photocatalysts, as well as the progress in their state-of-the-art application in the degradation of organic pollutants. Some heterojunctions formed by MOF-based composite photocatalysts are expounded in detailed. More importantly, the corresponding working mechanisms for the photocatalytic degradation of pesticides, antibiotics, and dyes driven by MOF-based photocatalysts are demonstrated. Further, a series of key parameters affecting the photocatalytic degradation process is briefly analyzed. Finally, the outlooks and challenges of MOF materials for the removal of organic pollutants in water are emphasized. It is hoped that this review will provide some meaningful inspiration and references for the future development of MOF-based photocatalysts with greater photocatalytic performance for wastewater treatment.