Abstract
Inactivation of bioaerosols is critical to prevent the spread of microbial pathogens in air. Photocatalytic inactivation processes are environmental friendliness, while time-consuming and insufficient reactive oxygen species (ROSs) generation to irreversibly inactivate bacteria in bioaerosols. In this work, a novel photocatalytic ozonation (PCO) system was constructed, consisting of in situ grown NiFeOOH nanosheets on nickel foam (NiFeOOH NSs/NF) and trace concentration of ozone (O3). Specifically, the PCO system exhibited remarkable photocatalytic inactivation efficiency (99.99%) within an ultrashort retention time of 8.07 s (RH = 90%) while no bacteria survived after 24-h cultivation. The irreversible inactivation of bacteria in this PCO system attributes to the synergistic effect of physical destruction by NiFeOOH NSs/NF and oxidative damage by photogenerated ROSs. This research provides a better alternative for efficient inactivation of bioaerosols and opens the door for the application of PCO system in reducing the exposure risk of bioaerosols.
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have