Photocatalysis in alkali activated cementitious materials

Photocatalysis technology shows a great potential in environmental pollution governance because it can effectively control pollutants without producing secondary pollution. Researchers have made long-term efforts to enable photocatalysis to gradually enter practical applications. With the continuous improvement of people's pursuit of life quality, photocatalyst is embedded into building materials and endows them with antibacterial, self-cleaning, purification/decomposition of harmful gases, and degradation of organic pollutants under light conditions. Alkali activated cementitious material (AACM) is one of the alternative products of Portland cement . It can be used as the perfect carrier of photocatalyst because of its unique 3D network structure. In this work, the photocatalytic mechanism and modification of photocatalyst are detailed introduced, the chemical reaction and functional utilization of AACM are clearly described, and the research progress of photocatalyst/AACM composites regarding to different precursors is seasonably reviewed. The broad application prospects and urgent problems of photocatalyst/AACM composites are also discussed. ● Photocatalyst/AACM composites decompose pollutants. ● Photocatalysis mechanism and modification of photocatalyst are introduced. ● Research progress of photocatalyst/AACM composites is seasonably reviewed. ● Application prospects and urgent problems of photocatalyst/AACM are discussed.