Enhancing Photocatalytic Activity by Piezoelectric Effect in Dye Removal from Wastewater

Nowadays, the photocatalytic process, one of the advanced oxidation methods for removing environmental pollutants, has attracted tremendous research interest. The piezo-photocatalytic effect has been proposed as one of the most effective methods to improve photocatalytic activity to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of advanced oxidation methods. Many recent efforts have been made in dye wastewater treatment using photocatalytic compounds. However, few studies have suggested using piezocatalytic properties to improve the photocatalytic performance of materials (piezo-photocatalysts). This study reviews compounds' photocatalytic, piezocatalytic, and piezo-photocatalytic properties with these properties and their potential in removing dyes from wastewater. Also, considering the literature, the approaches to increase the performance of photocatalysts and advanced applications of piezocatalysts and piezo-photocatalysts have been presented. Finally, piezo-photocatalyst has been introduced as the best approach to remove dyes from wastewater. Piezo-photocatalytic dye decomposition shows the piezoelectric efficiency in developing the piezocatalytic process. This process can promote the separation of photo-induced electron-hole pairs and lead to the synergistic effect between photocatalytic and piezocatalytic properties.