Photocatalysis: laboratory to market

Photocatalysis is a green approach that is in high demand. The large-scale production of photocatalysts for real-life applications has been developed to solve the environmental problems taking place in the rapidly growing industrialized world. Although many photocatalysts have been produced in laboratories, the use of photocatalysis for real-life applications such as improving indoor air quality, constructing roads, and for the paint to improve air pollution is in demand. Moreover, the developed photocatalysts in the markets should meet the need of human beings to counter environmental problems. Reportedly, the global demand for the use of photocatalysts has grown over the years. This resulted in the increased demand for photocatalysts because of their self-cleaning properties and low maintenance cost which drives the growth of the industries and markets. The materials typically used among the photocatalysts are metal oxides, such as TiO2, ZnO, SnO2, and CeO2, and chalcogenides, such as MoS2, ZnS, and CdS and their composites as well as analogs. Interestingly, it has been observed that the consumption of TiO2 has dominated globally over the rest of the materials due to its high chemical and physical stability as well as low cost.