Title : Visible light-active bismuth oxide-based photocatalytic coatings and their potential against biological contaminants
Abstract:
Rapid development of semiconductor photocatalysis over the past few decades resulted in realisation of growing potential of this technique for environmental remediation processes. Indeed, various types of photocatalytic materials are being successfully implemented in construction industry, healthcare settings, water treatment and energy production facilities recently. However, there is also a growing need in development and exploitation of novel photocatalytic materials, as the most widely used one, titanium dioxide, is often not applicable for high throughput processes due to low quantum efficiency and lack of visible light activity.
Bismuth oxide and complex oxides have attracted a considerable amount of researchers’ attention over the past few years. With bang gap values ranging from 2.3 to 2.8 eV these materials are typically visible-light active and therefore represent promising candidates for development of efficient solar-responsive photocatalysts. Various types of bismuth complex oxide-based photocatalysts have been reported of being efficient for water purification, green hydrogen production, VOC abatement and microbial inactivation processes.
The present study is focused on bismuth oxide photocatalytic coatings, deposited by magnetron sputtering – physical vapour deposition technique of industrial significance. The bismuth oxide coatings have been deposited, optimised and thoroughly analysed against a variety of environmentally relevant applications, including bacteria/viruses/algae inactivation, water treatment, etc. The combination of high antimicrobial activity under visible light irradiation with non-specific antimicrobial action makes bismuth oxide photocatalyst a promising candidate for application in real-world water treatment systems.
