Effect of Using N95 and Surgical Masks on Otoacoustic Emission in Cochlear Outer Hair Cells

Synthesis of Electrospun PAN/TiO2/Ag Nanofibers Membrane As Potential Air Filtration Media with Photocatalytic Activity

The PAN/TiO₂/Ag nanofibers membrane for air filtration media was successfully synthesized with electrospinning method. The morphology, size, and element percentage of the nanofiber were characterized by a scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive spectroscopy, while X-ray fluorescence and FTIR were used to observe the chemical composition. The water contact angle and UV-vis absorption were measured for physical properties. Performance for air filtration media was measured by pressure drop, efficiency, and quality factor test. TiO₂ and Ag have been successfully deposited in nonuniform 570 nm PAN/TiO₂/Ag nanofibers. The nanofiber membrane had hydrophilic surface after TiO₂ and Ag addition with a water contact angle of 34.58°. UV-vis data showed the shifting of absorbance and band gap energy of nanofibers membrane to visible light from 3.8 to 1.8 eV. The 60 min spun PAN/TiO₂/Ag nanofibers membrane had a 96.9% efficiency of PM_2.5, comparable to results reported in previous studies. These properties were suitable to be applied on air filtration media with photocatalytic activity for self-cleaning performance.