Photo-active float for field water disinfection

Abstract

The present study investigates the antibacterial activity of a photoactive float fabricated with visible light active N–F–TiO₂ for the disinfection of field water widely contaminated with Gram positive and Gram negative bacteria like, Salmonella typhimurium (Gram negative), Escherichia coli (Gram negative), Staphylococcus aureus (Gram positive), Bacillus species (Gram positive), and Pseudomonas species (Gram negative). The antibacterial activity can be attributed to the unique properties of the photocatalyst, which releases reactive oxygen species in aqueous solution, under the illumination of sunlight. N–F–TiO₂ nanoparticles efficiently photocatalyse the destruction of all the bacteria present in the contaminated water, giving clean water. The inactivation of bacteria is confirmed by a standard plate count method, MDA, RNA and DNA analysis. The purity of water was further validated by SPC indicating nil counts of bacteria after two days of storing and testing. The photocatalysts were characterized by XRD, BET measurement, SEM, EDX, UV–Vis and PL analysis.