Magnéli-Phase Ti4O7-Doped Laser-Induced Graphene Surfaces and Filters for Pollutant Degradation and Microorganism Removal

Layer-by-Layer Construction of Antibacterial and Anticoagulant Blood Contacting Materials

Vascular transplantation is a common treatment for Cardiovascular disease (CVD). However, the mismatch of mechanical, structural, or microenvironmental properties of materials limits the clinical application. Therefore, the functional construction of artificial vessels or other blood contact materials remains an urgent challenge. In this paper, the composite nanofibers of polycaprolactone (PCL) with dopamine and polyethylenimine (PEI) coating are first prepared, which are further self-assembled by anticoagulant hirudin (rH) and antimicrobial peptide (AMP) of HHC36 through layer-by-layer (LBL) method. The results of FTIR and XPS analysis show that hirudin and AMP are successfully loaded on PEI-PDA/PCL nanofibers and the hydrophilicity is improved. They also show good mechanical properties that the ultimate tensile strength and elongation at break are better than natural blood vessels. The antibacterial results show that the antibacterial effect is still 93% against E. coli on the fifth day because of the stable and continuous release of HHC36 and rH. The performance of anticoagulant activity also exhibited the same results, which APTT is even 9.7s longer in the experimental group than the control group on the fifth day. The novel materials would be effectively solve the formation of thrombosis around artificial blood vessel grafts and the treatment of inflammation.

Iron Nanoparticle-Incorporated Laser-Induced Graphene Filters for Environmental Remediation via an In Situ Electro-Fenton Process

Laser-induced graphene (LIG) has garnered much attention due to its facile and chemically free fabrication technique. Metal nanoparticle incorporation into the LIG matrix can improve its electrical and catalytical properties for environmental application. Here, we demonstrate the fabrication of nanoscale zerovalent iron (nZVI) nanoparticle-incorporated LIG (Fe-LIG) and sulfidized-nanoscale zerovalent iron (S-nZVI) nanoparticle-incorporated LIG (SFe-LIG) surfaces. The sheets were first fabricated to investigate nanoparticle loading, successful incorporation in the LIG matrix, and electrochemical performance as electrodes. Fe-LIG and SFe-LIG sheets showed ∼3-3.5 times more charge density as compared with the control LIG sheet. The XPS and its deconvolution confirmed the presence of nZVI and S-nZVI in the Fe-LIG and SFe-LIG surfaces, which can generate in situ hydroxyl radical (•OH) via iron activation of electrogenerated hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) in short in situ electro-Fenton process. After confirmation of the successful incorporation of iron-based nanoparticles in the LIG matrix, filters were fabricated to demonstrate the application in the flow-through filtration. The Fe-LIG and SFe-LIG filters showed ∼10-30% enhanced methylene blue removal under the application of 2.5 V at ∼1000 LMH flux. The Fe-LIG and SFe-LIG filters also showed complete 6-log bacteria and virus removal at 2.5 and 5 V, respectively, while the LIG filters showed only ∼4-log removal. Such enhanced removal by the Fe-LIG and SFe-LIG filters as compared to LIG filters is attributed to the improved charge density, electrochemical activity, and in situ electro-Fenton process. The study shows the potential to develop catalytic LIG-based surfaces for various applications, including contaminant removal and microbial inactivation.

In-situ fabrication of titanium suboxide-laser induced graphene composites: Removal of organic pollutants and MS2 Bacteriophage

Titanium suboxides (TSO) are identified as a series of compounds showing excellent electro- and photochemical properties. TSO composites with carbon-based materials such as graphene have further improved water splitting and pollutant removal performance. However, their expensive and multi-step synthesis limits their wide-scale use. Furthermore, recently discovered laser-induced graphene (LIG) is a single-step and low-cost fabrication of graphene-based composites. Moreover, LIG's highly electrically conductive surface aids in tremendous environmental applications, including bacterial inactivation, anti-biofouling, and pollutant sensing. Here, we demonstrate the single-step in-situ fabrication of TSO-LIG composite by directly scribing the TiO₂ mixed poly(ether) sulfone sheets using a CO₂ infrared laser. In contrast, earlier composites were derived from either commercial-grade TSO or synthesized TSO with graphene. The characteristic Ti³⁺ peaks in XPS confirmed the conversion of TiO₂ into its sub-stoichiometric form, enhancing the electro-catalytical properties of the LIG-TiO_x composite surface. Electrochemical characterization, including impedance spectroscopy, validated the surface's enhanced electrochemical activity and electrode stability. Furthermore, the LIG-TiO_x composite surfaces were tested for anti-biofouling action and electrochemical application as electrodes and filters. The composite electrodes exhibit enhanced degradation performance for removing emerging pollutant antibiotics ciprofloxacin and methylene blue due to the in-situ hydroxyl radical generation. Additionally, the LIG-TiO_x conductive filters showed the complete 6-log killing of mixed bacterial culture and MS2 phage virus in flow-through filtration mode at 2.5 V, which is ∼2.5-log more killing compared to non-composited LIG filers at 500 Lm^-2h^-1. Nevertheless, these cost-effective LIG-TiO_x composites have excellent electrical properties and can be effectively utilized for energy and environmental applications.