Photocatalytic and antimicrobial efficacy of PVDF/TiO₂ membranes fabricated by solution blow spinning

Abstract

With its ability to purify water and treat wastewater, photocatalytic membranes have become a promising solution. The membrane's unique properties allow for the separation of solid compounds and the degradation of organic materials through photocatalytic and antibacterial means. Poly(vinylidene fluoride)/titanium oxide (PVDF/TiO2) composite remain the materials of choice for making these membranes due to their economy, effectiveness, safety, and durability. In this work a photocatalytic membrane reactor (PMR) system was developed using PVDF/TiO2 membranes fabricated by the solution blow spinning (SBS) process. Obtaining photocatalytic membranes using this method is an efficient and ecological route that overcomes the disadvantage of separating the photocatalyst after the treatment is complete. The results of PMR system showed that the PVDF/TiO2 membrane could effectively remove total coliforms and E. coli from polluted water. After 10 min of contaminated water circulation through the PMR system, the presence of pathogens was not detected, indicating the efficiency of the obtained membranes.

Upscaling of Electrospinning Technology and the Application of Functionalized PVDF-HFP@TiO2 Electrospun Nanofibers for the Rapid Photocatalytic Deactivation of Bacteria on Advanced Face Masks

“…In the work carried out by Chen et al, a high inactivation rate of at least ~99% against S. aureus was obtained by exposing the PAN-based electrospun filter functionalized at 2 wt.% TiO 2 NPs to 30 min of UV irradiation [38]. Also, since a significant resistance of Coliforms bacteria to UV-A-activated TiO 2 NPs was observed compared to E. coli in the contaminated PVDF-TiO 2 fiber membrane, a longer exposure to a UV-A source (~10 min) was required to achieve a complete inactivation of both the bacteria [77]. These studies indicate that a higher exposure time to UV-A light can be beneficial to achieve a better antibacterial performance against both gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria strains, especially for the more resistant ones, in the functionalized electrospun membranes, thus reducing the risk of disease spread, which is caused by the handling and reuse of contaminated face masks.…”