Abstract
Often, solid matter is separated from particle-laden flow streams using electrospun filters due to their high specific surface area, good ability to capture aerial particulate matter, and low material costs. Moreover, electrospinning allows incorporating nanoparticles to improve the filter’s air filtration efficiency and bacterial removal. Therefore, a new, improved polyacrylonitrile (PAN) nanofibers membrane that could be used to remove air pollutants and also with antibacterial activity was developed. We engineered three different filters that are characterized by the different particles embedded in the PAN nanofibers: titanium dioxide (TiO2), zinc oxide (ZnO), and silver (Ag). Then, their filtration performance was assessed by quantifying the filtration of sodium chloride (NaCl) aerosol particles of 9 to 300 nm in diameter using a scanning mobility particle sizer. The TiO2_F filter displayed the smallest fiber diameter and the highest filtration efficiency (≈100%). Conversely, the Ag_F filter showed the highest quality factor (≈0.06 Pa−1) because of the lower air pressure drop. The resulting Ag_F nanofibers displayed a very good antibacterial activity using an Escherichia coli suspension (108 CFU/mL). Moreover, the quality factor of these membranes was higher than that of the commercially available nanofiber membrane for air filtration.
Highlights
Fossil fuels and industries release many pollutants in the atmosphere [1]
Our results indicate that loading silver nanoparticles in PAN nanofibers using electrospinning is an efficient method to develop air filters for airborne nanoparticle removal with bactericidal activity
The PAN solution viscosity and conductivity was modified upon addition of the nanoparticles and this affected the nanofiber formation, they were produced using the same electrospinning parameters
Summary
Particles smaller than 2.5 μm (PM2.5) are dangerous for humans because their small size facilitates their diffusion in bronchi and lungs [2]. The size of combustion particles is normally about 10–50 nm; they can combine with other particles and generate larger particulates. All these agglomerated particles can be released in the air when broken down. Most of them usually with a diameter smaller than 1000 μm, are the contaminants that are eliminated by air filtration. The diameter of particles in chemical and biological aerosols varies between 1 and 10 μm (particles smaller than 2.5 μm are dangerous for human health)
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