Hydroxyapatite/platinum bio-photocatalyst: a biomaterial approach to self-cleaning
Abstract
A bio-inspired approach to photocatalysis with a selection of biologically acceptable building blocks that can be activated by non-toxic visible light is a direction of research for the design of advanced, biomaterials that are able to induce self-cleaning. Here we show that a combination of hydroxyapatite (HAp) with platinum (Pt0 and Ptn+) is suitable to form a novel photocatalytically active material. The so-formed hybrid semiconductor/metallic nanocomposites made of