Photocatalytic and antibacterial properties under UV light of TiO₂ impregnated bacterial cellulose

Abstract

Nowadays, toxic and pathogenic contamination in water has become a serious pollution problem. Several treatments have been proposed to solve the problem including the use of photocatalysts to promote photocatalytic reactions. Photocatalytic reactions have been reported to be an efficient method to treat various toxic substances as well as pathogenic microorganisms. Among the inorganic photocatalysts, TiO₂ has proven as the most promising photocatalyst capable of being utilized for a wide range of environmental applications. In this study, TiO₂ was impregnated into a bacterial cellulose (BC) matrix. Due to its porous structure and high surface area, the BC was found to be a good support for photocatalytic reactions of TiO₂. Methylene blue, a basic dye, was used as a model to determine photocatalytic efficiency of the TiO₂ impregnated bacterial cellulose on the methylene blue removal. In addition, antibacterial property against S. aureus, a gram positive bacterium, and E. coli, a gram negative bacterium, of the TiO₂ impregnated bacterial cellulose was also investigated.