Nanocharacterization and bactericidal performance of silver modified titania photocatalyst

An environmental-friendly procedure for manufacturing silver (Ag) and titania (TiO2) nanocomposites in an aqueous solution is presented. This green synthetic approach results in the successful production of nanomaterials with high dispersion and crystallinity. The colloidal suspensions of the nanocomposites composed of metal and ceramic (Ag–TiO2) were found to be extremely stable over a prolonged time period. Morphologically, nanocomposites were found to be composed of near-spherical particles that were highly crystalline. The nanocomposites were mono-dispersed with particles varying in size from 20 to 50 nm, depending upon nanocomposite solution pH. Indexed metallic nanoscale silver exhibited a face-centered cubic (fcc) crystalline phase structure. Nanocomposite elemental composition studies indicated that the molar ratio of Ag and Ti was approximately 1–20. The binding energies and energy differences of Ag, Ti and O were well-indexed with their associated standard spectra. Nanocomposite optical absorption properties were consistent with noble metal nanoparticles. The zetapotential for the nanocomposites was higher at acidic pH and exhibited an absolute negative charge that apparently inhibited particle agglomeration. Escherichia coli (E. coli), a Gram-negative model microorganism was effectively inactivated using the nanocomposites under visible light at ambient temperature and pressure. The ‘green chemistry’ derived Ag–TiO2 composites are applicable for the removal of biological impurities from drinking and underground water supplies. The results of the study indicated that nanocomposites could be specifically designed to prevent growth of bacteria in water.