Bacteria and fungi inactivation by photocatalysis under UVA irradiation: liquid and gas phase

• Type: Article in International Scientific Journal
• Date: 2017

Authors

Vitor Vilar (Author) FEUP; Caio Silva (Author) FEUP; Sandra Miranda (Author) FEUP; Filipe Lopes (Author) FEUP; Mário Silva (Author) FFUP; Márcia Dezotti (Author) Other; Adrian M T Silva (Author) FEUP; Joaquim Luís Faria (Author) FEUP; Rui Boaventura (Author) FEUP; Eugenia Pinto (Author) FFUP

Journal

Title: Environmental Science and Pollution Research

Vol. 24 No. 3

Pages: 6372-6381

ISSN: 0944-1344

Publisher: Springer Nature

Indexing

ISI Web of Knowledge - 43 Citations

ISI Web of Science

Scopus - 48 Citations

Scientific classification

FOS: Engineering and technology > Environmental engineering

CORDIS: Technological sciences > Technology > Environmental technology

Associated Projects

AIRPHOTOXI - AIRPHOTOXI-DESTOXIFICAÇÃO SOLAR DE AR INTERIOR: BIOAEROSSÓIS E COVs

LSRE-LCM - Laboratório de Processos de Separação e Reação - Laboratório de Catálise e Materiais

Other information

Authenticus ID: P-00K-KT8

DOI: 10.1007/s11356-016-7137-8

Abstract (EN): In the last decade, environmental risks associated with wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) have become a concern in the scientific community due to the absence of specific legislation governing the occupational exposure limits (OEL) for microorganisms present in indoor air. Thus, it is necessary to develop techniques to effectively inactivate microorganisms present in the air of WWTPs facilities. In the present work, ultraviolet light A radiation was used as inactivation tool. The microbial population was not visibly reduced in the bioaerosol by ultraviolet light A (UVA) photolysis. The UVA photocatalytic process for the inactivation of microorganisms (bacteria and fungi, ATCC strains and isolates from indoor air samples of a WWTP) using titanium dioxide (TiO2 P25) and zinc oxide (ZnO) was tested in both liquid-phase and airborne conditions. In the slurry conditions at liquid phase, P25 showed a better performance in inactivation. For this reason, gas-phase assays were performed in a tubular photoreactor packed with cellulose acetate monolithic structures coated with P25. The survival rate of microorganisms under study decreased with the catalyst load and the UVA exposure time. Inactivation of fungi was slower than resistant bacteria, followed by Gram-positive bacteria and Gram-negative bacteria.

Language: English

Type (Professor's evaluation): Scientific

No. of pages: 10