Clean and accessible water for all has been defined by the United Nations as a major goal to promote sustainability in a planet with improved life quality. However, the growth of population and global industry processes are having a massive impact on the water quality. The presence of organic pollutants in water and wastewater, such as pharmaceuticals, organic dyes and by-products of industrial processes, is a major issue. Conventional wastewater treatments are still limited, and, consequently, it is crucial to design innovative cleaning technologies such as heterogeneous photocatalysis with nanomaterials. Here we review mechanisms and applications of carbon-based nanostructures for heterogeneous photocatalysis applied to water purification. In particular, we present recent developments in synthetic routes and surface modification of carbon nanostructures aiming at their use under visible light irradiation. As such, carbon-based nanostructures decorated with distinct phases have been investigated, such as semiconductor compounds and polyoxometalates. The photocatalytic efficiency of hybrid nanocomposite materials is attributed to improved light harvesting and reduced recombination of photo-generated charge carriers. Furthermore, the recovery of photocatalysts by using assisted magnetic separation is presented as a promising strategy of reusability.

联合国已将人人享有干净和可利用的水定为在改善生活质量的星球上促进可持续发展的主要目标。但是，人口的增长和全球工业流程对水质产生了巨大影响。一个重要的问题是水和废水中有机污染物的存在，例如药物，有机染料和工业过程的副产品。常规废水处理仍然受到限制，因此，设计创新的清洁技术（例如纳米材料的异质光催化）至关重要。在这里，我们回顾了用于水净化的非均相光催化碳基纳米结构的机理和应用。特别是，我们介绍了碳纳米结构的合成路线和表面改性的最新进展，旨在在可见光照射下使用它们。这样，已经研究了装饰有不同相的碳基纳米结构，例如半导体化合物和多金属氧酸盐。杂化纳米复合材料的光催化效率归因于改善的光收集和减少了光生电荷载体的重组。此外，通过使用辅助磁分离回收光催化剂被认为是有前途的可重用性策略。杂化纳米复合材料的光催化效率归因于改善的光收集和减少了光生电荷载体的重组。此外，通过使用辅助磁分离回收光催化剂被认为是一种有前途的可重复使用策略。杂化纳米复合材料的光催化效率归因于改善的光收集和减少了光生电荷载体的重组。此外，通过使用辅助磁分离回收光催化剂被认为是一种有前途的可重复使用策略。