Luceri Angelica, Toppan Michela, Calogero Alessandro, Rinaldi Antonio, Balagna Cristina
Department of Applied Science and Technology, Politecnico di Torino, Corso Duca degli Abruzzi 24, 10129 Turin, Italy.
CRAB Medicina Ambiente, Via Torino, 54, 13900 Biella, Italy.
Nanomaterials (Basel). 2025 Jun 12;15(12):911. doi: 10.3390/nano15120911.
Water contamination due to microbial proliferation remains a critical global challenge, especially with increasing urbanization, industrial activities, and the use of agrochemicals, and it requires the development of innovative methods for their purification that are not harmful to the environment and humans. In this study, innovative antibacterial nanocomposite coatings, composed of zirconia and silver nanocluster, were developed and deposited via eco-friendly co-sputtering physical vapor deposition (PVD) method onto electrospun polymeric membranes (PCL and PAN-PCL) for water filtration applications. Structural and morphological analyses, including XRD and UV-Vis spectroscopy, confirmed the deposition of a composite coating, consisting of an amorphous zirconia matrix embedding silver nanoclusters, homogeneously distributed on one side of the polymeric fibers. Wettability evaluations showed an increase in hydrophobicity after coating, particularly affecting the filtration performance of the PCL membranes. Antibacterial tests revealed strong inhibition against (Gram-positive) and partial efficacy against (Gram-negative). Filtration tests of contaminated solutions revealed a 99% reduction in , significant inhibition of , and limited effect on , with no bacterial proliferation observed on the coated membranes. These results underscore the effectiveness of ZrO/Ag nanocomposites in enhancing microbial control and suggest a promising, scalable strategy for sustainable and safe water purification systems.
微生物繁殖导致的水污染仍然是一个严峻的全球性挑战，尤其是随着城市化进程加快、工业活动增加以及农用化学品的使用，这就需要开发创新的净化方法，这些方法对环境和人类无害。在本研究中，通过环保的共溅射物理气相沉积（PVD）方法，制备了由氧化锆和银纳米团簇组成的创新型抗菌纳米复合涂层，并将其沉积在用于水过滤应用的电纺聚合物膜（PCL和PAN-PCL）上。包括XRD和UV-Vis光谱在内的结构和形态分析证实了复合涂层的沉积，该涂层由嵌入银纳米团簇的无定形氧化锆基质组成，均匀分布在聚合物纤维的一侧。润湿性评估表明涂层后疏水性增加，尤其影响了PCL膜的过滤性能。抗菌测试显示对（革兰氏阳性）有强烈抑制作用，对（革兰氏阴性）有部分效果。对受污染溶液的过滤测试显示，（某种物质）减少了99%，对（另一种物质）有显著抑制作用，对（又一种物质）影响有限，且在涂覆膜上未观察到细菌繁殖。这些结果强调了ZrO/Ag纳米复合材料在增强微生物控制方面的有效性，并为可持续和安全的水净化系统提出了一种有前景的、可扩展的策略。
