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Visible light responsive CuS/ protonated g-C3N4 heterostructure for rapid sterilization.
Hongyan Ding1, Donglin Han1, Yajing Han1
1The Key Laboratory of Advanced Ceramics and Machining Technology by the Ministry of Education of China, School of Materials Science & Engineering, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300072, China.
Journal of Hazardous Materials
|March 6, 2020
Summary
New CuS/protonated graphitic carbon nitride (PCN) composites offer rapid and safe sterilization. This material combines photocatalysis and photothermal effects to achieve over 98% bacterial killing efficiency for environmental disinfection.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Environmental Science
- Nanotechnology
Background:
- Environmental pollution by bacteria poses a significant threat to human health.
- There is a critical need for efficient and safe sterilization methods.
Purpose of the Study:
- To synthesize and characterize CuS/protonated g-C3N4 (CuS/PCN) composites for enhanced photocatalytic and photothermal sterilization.
- To investigate the synergistic effects of photocatalysis and photothermal action for bacterial inactivation.
Main Methods:
- CuS/PCN composites were synthesized using hydrothermal and electrostatic adsorption methods.
- Photocatalytic and photothermal properties were evaluated under visible light irradiation.
- Bacterial inactivation efficiency against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli was assessed.
Main Results:
- CuS/PCN composites demonstrated enhanced photocatalytic activity due to improved photogenerated electron-hole pair separation.
- Optimal CuS content (20%) yielded synergistic photothermal and photocatalytic effects, leading to significant temperature increase.
- Achieved high bacteria-killing efficiencies: 98.23% for Staphylococcus aureus and 99.16% for Escherichia coli within 20 minutes.
Conclusions:
- The CuS/PCN heterojunction effectively utilizes combined photocatalysis and photothermal effects for rapid and efficient bacterial disinfection.
- This composite material shows great promise for environmental sterilization applications, including water purification and public facility disinfection.
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