Photocatalytic inactivation of airborne microorganisms. Performance of different TiO2 coatings

ZACARIAS, S.M.; SATUF, M.L.; VACCARI, M.C.; ALFANO, O.M.

Advanced Oxidation Technologies - Sustainable Solutions for Environmental Treatments

CRC Press / Balkema

Año: 2014; p. 179 - 196

The quality of indoor air has a fundamental importance for human health. Indoor air pollutants include, among others, biological contaminants present as bioaerosols. The latter are mostly composed of bacterial cells, fungal spores and bacterial spores (Stetzenbach et al., 2004). In particular, bacterial endospores are characterized by their extreme latency, resistance to adverse environmental conditions and lack of metabolism. It is the resistance to treatments, including heat, desiccation, UV light and the action of harmful chemicals, the most important feature of spores (Atrih and Foster, 1999). This characteristic makes them a useful reference tool for decontamination tests. Moreover, bacterial endospores are frequently used to verify the efficiency of sterilization devices (Josset et al., 2008).