Synthesis of Highly Reusable TiO₂–Carbon Nanofibers for Efficient Removal of Pharmaceutical Pollutants from Wastewater

Recently, the growing issue of pharmaceutical pollutants (PCs) has resulted in the development of various technologies for their removal from wastewater. This study investigates an effective method for removing PCs using a combined adsorption–photocatalytic degradation process based on TiO₂-loaded carbon nanofibers (TiO₂–CNFs). The synthesized material exhibits high thermal stability, excellent electrical conductivity, strong adsorption and photocatalytic activity, and easy reusability, indicating its suitability as a cost-effective solution for wastewater treatment. Acetaminophen (ACP) and tetracycline (TC) were selected as model pharmaceutical contaminants to evaluate the adsorption–photocatalytic performance of TiO₂–CNF composite. In sewage wastewater, TiO₂–CNF catalyst effectively removed 96.8 % of ACP and 90.3 % of TC. It also maintained high removal efficiencies of 73.5 % and 61.2 % for ACP and TC, respectively, after eight reuse cycles. Besides, total organic carbon reduction, radical-quenching experiments, and liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry analyses were conducted to propose the removal mechanisms of ACP and TC. In addition, the limitations and benefits of CNF adsorption, TiO₂-based photocatalytic degradation, and the combined TiO₂–CNF method for removing PCs were discussed.