Recent advances in molecularly imprinted polymer‐based nano‐architecture as smart functional materials for photocatalytic degradation of pharmaceutical pollutants in wastewater

Abstract In search of advanced smart functional materials, molecularly imprinted polymer‐based nano‐architectures (MIPBNs) have emerged as promising candidates for various applications, including photocatalysis. Thus, this review focused on recent advances and emerging trends in the performance of MIPBNs for the photocatalytic degradation of pharmaceutical pollutants in both simulated and real effluents. Notably, the study findings revealed that MIPBNs achieve ≥80% degradation efficiency at pH ~4–11 and an average dose of 20–500 mg in 2.5–360 min. A dominant operational trend of •OH and •O 2 − was also observed. Additionally, the study shows that MIPBNs can be reused for 3–11 cycles while retaining over 75% of their original degradation efficiency and morphology. Recent advances include the application of Z‐scheme heterojunction/metal‐free MIPBNs like MIP/g‐C 3 N 4 and incorporation of CQDs to boost redox potential, improve charge separation, reduce the rate of e−/h + recombination, and introduce more oxygen vacancies for enhanced radical generation and photocatalytic degradation activities. In addition, the use of natural sunlight for photocatalytic degradation operations and automatic in‐situ photocatalytic regeneration is gaining popularity, reducing chemical consumption, saving energy usage, time, and costs. Overall, findings here indicate that MIPBNs have potential for real pharmaceutical wastewater treatment.