Electrospun nanofibers of polyvinylidene fluoride incorporated with titanium nanotubes for purifying air with bacterial contamination

Abstract

Polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) blended with varying concentrations of titanium nanotubes (TNT) was electrospun to result in a nanocomposite filter media. Sandwich structures were obtained by depositing the electrospun fibers between polypropylene (PP) nonwoven sheets. The synthesized tubular TNT was confirmed for its morphology through a transmission electron microscope (TEM). The prepared filter media was analyzed through a scanning electron microscope (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). The effectiveness of the filter media was evaluated through the zone of inhibition and antibacterial activity against E. coli and S. aureus. The Box-Behnken design is experimented with three-level variables, namely areal density of substrate (GSM), electrospinning time (hours), and concentration of TNT (wt%) for investigating the bacterial filtration efficiency through an Andersen sampler. Among other statistical tests (STATs), PVDF + 15 wt% TNT has a bacterial filtration efficiency of 99.88% providing greater potentials upon application for clean air management. It can be noted that the future application of this formulation could be efficient filtration of other microbes and could be used in facemasks to industrial-scale air filters. Graphical abstract Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s11356-021-13202-3.

Electrospun Poly(ethylene Terephthalate)/Silk Fibroin Composite for Filtration Application

“…As can be seen from Table 2 , the estimated pore size of r-PET and SF mats was larger than that of fibrous composites (except r-PSF7) and showed a decreasing trend with the decrease of fiber diameter. This trend is consistent with other electrospun nanofiber membrane investigations, where the larger pore size is obtained when fiber diameter increased [ 43 ].…”

“…Different polymeric materials have been used for producing electrospun membrane for filtration including cellulose acetate (CA) [ 37 ], silk fibroin (SF) [ 38 ], poly(lactic acid) (PLA) [ 39 ], polyamide-6 (PA6), poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) [ 40 ], polyvinylacetate (PVAc) [ 37 ], polyacrylonitrile (PAN) [ 41 , 42 ], polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) [ 43 ], or poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) [ 33 , 44 ].…”

Biomedical Applications of Nanofibers

“…Air, widespread with bioaerosols ranging from airborne viruses, bacteria, fungi, to pollens, is associated with a variety of adverse health effects, such as allergies, infectious diseases, respiratory illnesses and cancer. Low settling velocity and minute size of the particles are the major reason for these particles to remain in the atmosphere for a longer duration than other aerosols [ 116 , 117 ]. Currently, membrane filtration is thought to be the most effective physical approach against air pollutants.…”

“…Antibacterial and zone of inhibition studies revealed that the prepared filter media was highly efficient against both Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus . In this study, it was found that 15 wt % of the filler proved for the highest bacterial filter efficiency of 99.88% [ 116 ]. PAN/CuO nanofibers were successfully electrospun with varying concentrations of CuO in PAN nanofibers by Hashmi et al From their results, it can be concluded that tensile strength has direct and linear relationship with copper oxide concentration in PAN nanofibers.…”

Biomedical Applications of Nanofibers

“…Air, widespread with bioaerosols ranging from airborne viruses, bacteria, fungi, to pollens, is associated with a variety of adverse health eff ects, such as allergies, infectious diseases, respiratory illnesses and cancer. Low settling velocity and minute size of the particles are the major reason for these particles to remain in the atmosphere for a longer duration than other aerosols [116,117]. Currently, membrane fi ltration is thought to be the most eff ective physical approach against air pollutants.…”