A low-cost and reusable photothermal membrane for solar-light induced anti-bacterial regulation†
Abstract
In this work, a simple, low-cost, and applicable strategy for preparing membranes which allow photothermal conversion and have excellent anti-bacterial ability is proposed. Two steps, including soaking pristine glass fiber membranes in (NH4)2S2O8 solution and exposing the membranes to pyrrole vapor, afford an in situ surface polymerization of pyrrole monomers and darkening of the filtration membrane. A few characterization methods, together with a home-made air-cleaning testing system, are used to evaluate the photothermal conversion performance and anti-bacterial ability of the membranes. The surface temperature of the polypyrrole-modified membranes successfully reaches 129.4 °C and E. coli bacteria are reduced by 99.999% under illumination of 4.5 sun solar light. Compared with traditional one-off disinfectant methods, this anti-bacterial membrane is cost-effective, reusable, and could achieve non-contact sterilization without leading to significant environmental threats. Such a straightforward manufacture also offers great promise for industry-level production of a photothermal membrane, opening a new avenue to fabricate environment-friendly anti-bacterial materials and systems.