Photocatalytic degradation of 3-monochloropropane-1,2-diol in aqueous solutions by selenium doped boron carbide nanoparticles.

3-monochloropropane-1,2-diol (3-MCPD) belongs to the chloropropanols family and it is a thermal processing contaminant that exerts renal and reproductive toxicities. This work aimed to synthesize boron carbide (B4C) nanoparticles (NPs) and Se-doped B4C-NPs (Se@B4C-NPs) using the sol-gel approach. The photocatalytic activity of these NPs in removing 3-MCPD from aqueous solutions, was investigated based on changes in 3-MCPD levels as determined by UV-Vis spectrophotometry and liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). Also, a pilot cytotoxicity evaluation was performed using MTT assay following treating human foreskin fibroblasts (HFFs) for 48 and 72 h with the two NPs. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Field emission scanning electron microscopic (FE-SEM) analysis of the NPs confirmed that Se@B4C-NPs had crystalline structures with spherical morphology. Also, treatment with Se@B4C-NPs under optimum conditions (for 60 min at pH 7), effectively reduced 3-MCPD levels (by ~ 83%), which was greater than that observed for B4C-NPs (by ~ 51%). Moreover, MTT results showed that these NPs at levels applied in the present work, did not produce significant toxicity. Based on our findings, Se@B4C-NPs can be considered a promising tool for mitigating 3-MCPD levels in aqueous solutions.