Sea urchin-like WO3-x loaded with Ag for photocatalytic degradation and bactericidal

At present, a large number of pathogenic microorganisms and organic dyes pollute water resources and have an impact on human health. Photocatalysis is a promising method for sterilization and degradation. But research on the effective use of sunlight for photocatalytic inactivation of bacteria is limited. Sea urchin-like WO3-x was synthesized by hydrothermal method. Ag nanoparticles (Ag NPs) supported on WO3-x nanospheres were prepared by the photoreduction method to obtain Ag/WO3-x composites, and the reduction time could control the loading amount. The relevant properties of the material were characterized in detail. The photodegradation of Rhodamine B (Rhb) by WO3-x and Ag/WO3-x was carried out under simulated sunlight. The results shown that the photocatalytic degradation rate of Ag/WO3-x was about 69%, which was about twice that of WO3-x. The bactericidal activity of WO3-x and Ag/WO3-x against Escherichia coli(E.coli) and Staphylococcus aureus(S. aureus) was investigated. The synthesized Ag/WO3-x composites exhibited more than 97% bactericidal rate against both model bacteria under 2 h of light irradiation. The excellent photocatalytic degradation and bactericidal properties of Ag/WO3-x composites were due to the enhanced photocatalytic performance of the composites after WO3-x loaded with Ag NPs.

Automated summary

A new method for photocatalytic sterilization and degradation was studied using sea urchin-like WO3-x and Ag nanoparticles (Ag NPs) supported on WO3-x nanospheres to prepare Ag/WO3-x composites. The experimental results showed that Ag/WO3-x composites exhibited higher photocatalytic degradation and bactericidal effects, which may be attributed to the enhanced photocatalytic performance of the composites after WO3-x loaded with Ag NPs.