Environmental remediation and superhydrophilicity of ultrafine antibacterial tungsten oxide-based nanofibers under visible light source

Fabrication of nanosilver-decorated WO3 nanofibers was successfully performed. First, deposition of nanosilver onto electrospun WO3 nanofibers' surface was done via photoreduction of silver ion under visible or UV light. The resulting hybrid nanofibers not only revealed antibacterial characteristics but also maintained their photocatalytic performance towards methylene blue decomposition. Unexpectedly, the nanofibrous layers prepared from these nanofibers showed superhydrophilicity under a visible light source. The nanofibers might be advantageous in environmental and hygienic nanofiltration under natural light sources, where the self-cleaning characteristics could be valuable in maintenance processes. (C) 2012 Elsevier B. V. All rights reserved.