Carbon nitride-based photocatalysts for the mitigation of water pollution engendered by pharmaceutical compounds.

In recent decades, the destructive impact of active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) present in surface and drinking water on aquatic and terrestrial life forms becomes a major concern of researchers. API like diclofenac (DCF), carbamazepine (CBZ), tetracycline (TC), and sulfamethoxazole (SME) found in water bodies cause antimicrobial resistance and are potent carcinogens and endocrine disruptors. Conventional wastewater treatment methods possess some drawbacks and were found to be insufficient for the effective removal of APIs. Visible light-assisted semiconductor photocatalysis has become an alternative choice for tackling this worse scenario. Graphitic carbon nitride, a metal-free visible light active semiconductor photocatalyst is an emerging hotspot nanomaterial whose practical utility in water purification is widely recognized. This review comes up with an insightful outlook on the panorama of recent progress in the field of g-C₃N₄-assisted photocatalytic systems for the eradication of APIs. In addition, the review summarizes various strategies adopted for the broad-spectrum utilization of visible light and the enhancement of charge separation of pristine g-C₃N₄. The mechanistic pathways followed by different pharmaceuticals during their photocatalytic degradation process were also briefly discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]