Photocatalytic sterilization performance and mechanism of Ag/Ag3PO4/CNTs composites.

Industrial and agricultural sewage discharge is one of the important factors causing water pollution, and the pathogenic microorganisms in sewage are extremely harmful to the ecological environment and human health. Therefore, it is significant to study novel comprehensive photocatalytic materials to achieve the removal of pathogenic microorganisms in water. In this paper, Ag/AgAg3PO4/CNTs composites with brilliant photocatalytic performance were prepared by a combination of deposition-in-situ reduction process, and the composites were analyzed and characterized in detail using a variety of characterization tools, such as morphological features, crystal structure, elemental composition, and photoelectric properties. The bactericidal efficiency of Ag/AgAg3PO4/CNTs composites in visible light was evaluated by plate spreading method. The Ag/AgAg3PO4/CNTs composites were able to deactivate all 107 cfu/mL of E.coli and 92% of S.aureus (107 cfu/mL) in 20 min under visible light irradiation. SEM results indicated that the surface of S.aureus treated with Ag/Ag3PO4/CNTs and Light appeared to be obviously collapsed and wrinkled. The content of genetic material (DNA) in the cells was analyzed, and the results showed that the DNA content in S.aureus treated with Ag/AgAg3PO4/CNTs and Light was significantly reduced, suggesting that the reactive oxygen species (ROS) produced by Ag/AgAg3PO4/CNTs under light can effectively damage bacterial DNA. The construction of Ag/AgAg3PO4/CNTs composites provides a new idea for effective removal of pathogenic microorganisms under visible light. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]