Degradation of water contaminants by barium titanate (BaTiO3)-based materials: A critical review

Photocatalysis and piezo-photocatalysis are two advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) that have shown promise for eliminating some stubborn pollutants such as organic dyes and antibiotics, which are among the most commonly reported contaminants in wastewater from hospitals, pharmaceuticals and textile industries. Because of its special combination of ferroelectricity, strong internal electric fields, adjustable band configuration and superior chemical stability, barium titanate (BaTiO 3 ), a traditional ferroelectric perovskite semiconductor, has recently drawn a lot of interest for environmental uses. Because of these characteristics, BaTiO 3 and based materials are very appealing for improving charge separation, increasing the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and attaining better catalyst efficiency. The structural parameters, electrical behaviour and ferroelectric-piezoelectric properties of BaTiO 3 are all covered in this review, which is followed by an extensive description of photocatalytic and piezo-photocatalytic breakdown mechanisms. To illustrate their impact on morphology, crystallinity and catalytic performance, several synthesis and processing techniques—such as hydrothermal, ultrasonication, precipitation and calcination approaches—are critically contrasted. The recent developments in BaTiO 3 -based photocatalytic materials and their uses in antibiotic and dye degradation are methodically examined and summarized in this review. Lastly, this review highlights the main problems with BaTiO 3 , namely its limited ability to absorb visible light, its scalability and stability, and it suggests future research avenues for creating more advanced BaTiO 3 -based materials for effective and sustainable water treatment. • Ferroelectric, piezo-electric and photocatalytic properties of BaTiO 3 are reviewed. • Photocatalytic and piezo-photocatalytic pollutant degradations are discussed. • Synthetic methods of BaTiO 3 -based photocatalysts and heterojunctions are covered. • Advances in BaTiO 3 -based photocatalytic dye and antibiotic degradations are covered. • Challenges and future works for better BaTiO 3 -based catalyst design are presented.