Recent Developments in the Photo Catalytic Applications of Polymer Nanocomposites -An Overview

Water pollution by the synthetic dyes and heavy chemical substances has become the major issue around the globe after the rapid growth of industries and human activities. The dyes present in the contaminated water are non-biodegradable; hence it seriously affects the human beings and the environment. A number of conventional techniques were investigated by researchers such as chemical treatment, adsorption, biological treatment, and membrane-based separation to remove the pollutants from the water. Nevertheless, these techniques were not effective because this technique leaves some of the soluble organic compounds and bacteria which are very hard to remove. Hence the researchers around the globe have put their effort to develop a stable approach to address the day to day deterioration of water. Despite of all the above techniques the photo catalysis from the advanced oxidation process has emerged as an eco-friendly, convenient and simple technique for the degradation of pollutants by using sunlight (Visible) and ultraviolet light (UV). Recently polymer nanocomposites based photo catalyst was attracted for the treatment of waste water due to its unique properties such as surface mobility, large surface area and superior magnetic and optical properties. A substantial work has been accomplished and reported on the superior photo catalytic activity of polymer nanocomposite. Hence this review is dedicated to highlight the photo catalytic activity of polymer nanocomposites in the past decades and also the recent developments in the ultraviolet and visible light responsive polymer nanocomposites for their potential applications in environmental remediation to maintain the quality of drinking water.