Recent advances in transition metal oxide-based photocatalysis for the treatment of agricultural wastewater: A review

AbstractRecalcitrant pollutants, such as pesticides, antibiotics, and heavy metal ions (HMIs) in agricultural wastewater, pose serious threats to environmental safety and human health. Conventional treatment technologies often suffer from low efficiency, high energy consumption, and risks of secondary pollution. Transition metal oxide (TMO) photocatalysts have garnered significant attention for the treatment of advanced agricultural wastewater owing to their excellent physicochemical stability, tunable electronic structures, and potential for solar energy utilization. This review systematically summarizes recent research progress on TMO photocatalysts for this application, elucidating the mechanisms involved in the photocatalytic degradation of organic pollutants and reduction of HMIs. The structural characteristics and photocatalytic properties of single-metal oxides, multi-metal oxides, and heterojunction composites …