A review on self-modification of zirconium dioxide nanocatalysts with enhanced visible-light-driven photodegradation of organic pollutants

Abstract Over the past few years, photocatalysis is one of the most promising approaches for removing organic pollutants. Zirconium dioxide (ZrO2) has been shown to be effective in the photodegradation of organic pollutants. However, low photoresponse and fast electron-hole recombination of ZrO2 affected the efficiency of catalytic performance. Modifying the photocatalyst itself (self-modification) is a prominent way to enhance the photoactivity of ZrO2. Moreover, as ZrO2-like photocatalysts have a large bandgap, improving the spectral response via self-modification could extend the visible light region and reduce the chance of recombination. Here, we review the self-modification of ZrO2 for enhanced the degradation of organic pollutants. The approaches of the ZrO2 self-modification, including the type of synthetic route and synthesis parameter variation, are discussed in the review. This will be followed by a brief section on the effect of ZrO2 self-modification in terms of morphology, crystal structure, and surface defects for enhanced photodegradation efficiency. It also covers the discussion on the photocatalytic mechanism of ZrO2 self-modification. Finally, some challenges with ZrO2 catalysts are also discussed to promote new ideas to improve photocatalytic performance.