Ag-TiO2 Coated Polyurethane Composite Nanofiber Web for Application in the Protection against Chemical and Biological Warfare Agent

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Threats of chemical warfare (CW) and biological warfare (BW) agents are serious international problems. It is positively necessary to protect humankind against CW/BW agents. The objective in this work is to develop protective clothing that is effective against both CW and BW agents. The protective clothing material was made of composite nanofiber web that was composed of Ag-loaded TiO2 (Ag-TiO2) coated onto nanofiber by spontaneous using of electrospinning and electrospray. TiO2 is one of the most popular photocatalysts. Its main drawback is excitation only by UV light. To extend the absorption range of TiO2 into the visible range, Ag nanoparticles was deposited onto TiO2 surface. Ag is nontoxic metal with excellent antibacterial activity. Nanofiber web can be acted as physical shield from CW/BW agents. High surface area of nanofiber web can provide deposition sites for introducing Ag-TiO2. The morphologies of Ag-TiO2 samples and Ag-TiO2 coated PU composite nanofiber web were examined by FE-SEM. Presence of Ag nanoparticles was confirmed using FE-SEM/EDS and XRD. Further structural information for Ag-TiO2 is obtained by XPS. A broad absorption covering the visible range is confirmed by UV-vis. Finally protective ability against CW/BW agents of the composite nanofiber web is evaluated using CW/BW agent simulants.

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Journal: TechConnect Briefs
Volume: 1, Nanotechnology 2010: Advanced Materials, CNTs, Particles, Films and Composites
Published: June 21, 2010
Pages: 822 - 825
Industry sector: Advanced Materials & Manufacturing
Topics: Advanced Materials for Engineering Applications, Composite Materials
ISBN: 978-1-4398-3401-5