Photocatalytical Inactivation of Enterococcus faecalis from Water Using Functional Materials Based on Natural Zeolite and Titanium Dioxide

The functional materials based on natural zeolite (clinoptilolite), TiO2-zeolite and Ag-TiO2-zeolite have been successfully synthesized by solid-state reaction in fast-hydrothermal conditions. The obtained functional materials were investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), FT-IR (Fourier transform infrared) spectroscopy, DRUV-VIS (diffuse reflectance ultraviolet-visible) spectroscopy, BET (Brunauer-Emmett-Teller) and SEM/EDX (scanning electron microscope/energy dispersive X-ray spectrometer) analyses. The XRD results indicated that the clinoptilolite structure has a good thermal stabilization after the fast-hydrothermal treatment. Also, the high specific surface area about 92.55 m2·g−1 was noticed for Ag-TiO2-zeolite functional material. The presence of dopants was evidenced from EDX spectra. The enhanced bactericidal activity of Ag-TiO2-zeolite catalyst is proved through damaging of Enterococcus faecalis colonies under visible irradiation, at different material doses and irradiation times.