Fabrication of Superhydrophobic and Photocatalytic Self‐Cleaning Thin Film Using Polystyrene with Zno

Abstract

Zinc oxide (ZnO)‐based composites are among the semiconductor photocatalytic materials that exhibit promising research opportunities in the fields of optical, biomedical, and environmental materials because of their excellent physical stability, biocompatibility, low cost, and ease of fabrication. This article discusses the fabrication and use of ZnO‐based composites with excellent catalytic activity. Here, the various combinations of sol‐gel ZnO coatings were prepared using the spin coating technique, and characterized by 3D laser profilometry, UV–visible spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM). To determine the main functional groups, present in the prepared polymeric film, an FTIR investigation was conducted. The inclusion of Aloe vera with PF‐127 in the ZnO lattice is confirmed by the structural study of the X‐ray diffraction (XRD) pattern of Z‐PS, ZAL‐PS, and ZALPF‐PS, which showed a hexagonal wurtzite crystal structure and increasing in the peak position. The variation in strcuture and bandgap play major role in the enhancement of photocatalytic and antibacterial activity with ZALPF‐PS as compared to ZAL‐PS and Z‐PS. In contrast, water contact angle analysis reveals that the polymeric coating changes the surface roughness while simultaneously increasing the surface nonwettability. The prepared samples are also shown to be more resistant to Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa than standard antibiotics. This occurred because photocatalytic activity and superhydrophobic contact work together as a synergistic antibacterial mechanism. Furthermore, the nonwettable cotton substrate was also prepared, and their roughness behavior examined, which exhibited superhydrophobic performance against water, milk, coke, and coffee, which can be useful for medical purposes.