Study on the Inactivation of Bacteria Associated with Hospital Environments using Titanium and Iron Metal Oxides in Suspension

This research work presents the structural and photocatalytic modification of TiO2, widely used for bacteria disinfection. One of the drawbacks of TiO2 is its absorption in the UV region and high recombination. In this regard, as a strategy to address this issue, iron(III) has been incorporated into...

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Autores:
Angulo Paternina, Elba Rosario
Tipo de recurso:
Fecha de publicación:
2025
Institución:
Universidad de Antioquia
Repositorio:
Repositorio UdeA
Idioma:
eng
OAI Identifier:
oai:bibliotecadigital.udea.edu.co:10495/48033
Acceso en línea:
https://hdl.handle.net/10495/48033
Palabra clave:
Fotoquímica
Photochemistry
Bacterias
Bacteria
Desinfección
Disinfection
Inactivación de bacterias
https://id.nlm.nih.gov/mesh/D010777
https://id.nlm.nih.gov/mesh/D001419
https://id.nlm.nih.gov/mesh/D004203
ODS 3: Salud y bienestar. Garantizar una vida sana y promover el bienestar de todos a todas las edades
Rights
openAccess
License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/
Description
Summary:This research work presents the structural and photocatalytic modification of TiO2, widely used for bacteria disinfection. One of the drawbacks of TiO2 is its absorption in the UV region and high recombination. In this regard, as a strategy to address this issue, iron(III) has been incorporated into the surface, taking advantage of the hydroxylated species on the TiO2 surface. This interaction promotes new electronic transitions in the visible region, thus enabling its application in hospital environments irradiated with visible LED light. The material was characterized using spectroscopic, electrochemical, and morphological techniques to understand its structural and optical properties. Subsequently, a correlation was made with the disinfection properties against a bacterium commonly found in hospital environments, such as E. coli. It is found that the incorporation of iron(III) enables the production of superoxide anion radicals, with an Eg= 2.08 V, and valence and conduction band potentials of 1.766 V and -0.314 V respectively. The difference in disinfection between SUNTEST and LED irradiation lies in the time required. In the former case, 20 minutes are sufficient, while in the latter, 6 hours are needed. However, incorporating LEDs in hospitals is easier and allows this technology to be implemented in real environments. This work contributes significantly to interdisciplinary proposals that address public health needs and fundamentally contribute to the understanding of disinfection mechanisms.