Han R, Coey JD, O'Rourke C, Bamford CGG, Mills A. Flexible, disposable photocatalytic plastic films for the destruction of viruses.
JOURNAL OF PHOTOCHEMISTRY AND PHOTOBIOLOGY B: BIOLOGY 2022;
235:112551. [PMID:
36063568 PMCID:
PMC9404456 DOI:
10.1016/j.jphotobiol.2022.112551]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/08/2022] [Revised: 07/26/2022] [Accepted: 08/21/2022] [Indexed: 01/31/2023]
Abstract
A thin, 30 μm, flexible, robust low-density polyethylene, LDPE, film, loaded with 30 wt% P25 TiO2, is extruded and subsequently rendered highly active photocatalytically by exposing it to UVA (352 nm, 1.5 mW cm−2) for 144 h. The film was tested for anti-viral activity using four different viruses, namely, two strains of Influenza A Virus (IAV), WSN, and a recombinant PR8, encephalomyocarditis virus (EMCV), and SARS-CoV-2 (SARS2). The film was irradiated with either UVA radiation (352 nm, 1.5 mW cm−2; although only 0.25 mW cm−2 for SARS2) or with light from a cool white fluorescent lamp (UVA irradiance: 365 nm, 0.047 mW cm−2). In all cases the films exhibited an average virus inactivation rate of >1.5log/h. In the case of SARS2, the rates were > 2log/h, with the rate determined using a dedicated, low intensity UVA source (0.25 mW cm−2) only 1.3 x's faster than that for a cool white lamp (UVA irradiance = 0.047 mW cm−2), which suggests that SARS2 is particularly prone to photocatalytic inactivation even under low UV irradiation conditions, such as found in a room lit with just white fluorescent tubes. This is the first example of a flexible, very thin, photocatalytic plastic film, produced by a scalable process (extrusion), for virus inactivation. The potential of such a film for use as a disposable, self-sterilising thin plastic material alternative to the common, non-photocatalytic, inert equivalent used currently for curtains, aprons and table coverings in healthcare is discussed briefly.
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