More effective than traditional sanitizers: that's the power of titanium dioxide.
Photocatalysis has been shown in numerous studies to kill a wide range of organisms, including gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria, including endospores, fungi, algae, protozoa, and viruses, as well as inactivate prions and destroy microbial toxins.
During the photocatalytic process promoted by UV radiation, oxygen radicals, and monoatomic and triatomic oxygen molecules are formed, which become the promoters of antibacterial action, leading first to the leakage of cellular contents, then to cell lysis and finally to the complete mineralization of the organism.
Photocatalysis, to put it better, not only kills bacterial cells but also degrades them because the killing mechanism works by degrading the cell wall and cytoplasmic membrane.
Killing is most efficient when there is close contact between organisms, and the catalyst used for photocatalysis is titanium dioxide.
Titanium dioxide is more effective than any other antibacterial agent because the photocatalytic reaction takes place even when there are cells covering the surface and bacterial multiplication is active, activating on the surface and bypassing the biofilm created by the bacteria. It is effective where traditional chemical sanitizers are less effective. In addition, the endotoxin resulting from cell death is decomposed by photocatalytic action.
Among the catalysts, titanium dioxide is particularly suitable because it does not degrade and has a long-term antibacterial and virucidal effect. In general, disinfection by titanium dioxide is 3 times more effective than chlorine and 1.5 times more effective than ozone.
Oltre la sanificazione aria:
il potere battericida del TiO2
Titanium dioxide's ability to sanitize by reducing bacterial load has led to the development of several commercial products.
Major applications include surface disinfectants applied in spray or liquid form and air purification filters.
The use of photocatalytic filters for air sanitization has increased significantly during the pandemic and is particularly effective because it allows for multiple benefits to be achieved with a single solution:
- Reduction of microbial load: (viruses, bacteria, molds, pollen, etc.)
- Substantial pollutant reduction: Highly effective against Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), the category encompassing the vast majority of airborne pollutants.
- Extended filter lifespan: Thanks to the photocatalytic effect, the filters are self-cleaning, significantly increasing their operational life.
For further information: Photocatalytic disinfection using titanium dioxide: spectrum and mechanism of antimicrobial activity (National Library of Medicine) and Photocatalytic Oxidation of TiO2.
