ScholarWorks@중앙대학교

초록

The development of reusable and efficient antiviral filtration materials has become increasingly critical in the context of global health crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic. In this study, we present electrospun polymer nanofiber filters embedded with CuxO-TiO2 photocatalysts, designed for visible-light responsiveness and long-term antiviral functionality. The filters were fabricated via both pre-synthesized and in-situ formation methods, yielding nanofibers with uniform morphology and homogeneously distributed photocatalyst domains, as confirmed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) analyses. Antiviral performance, assessed using the model bacteriophage Phi X174, was strongly dependent on the Cu/(Ti/C) atomic ratio, with optimal efficacy consistently observed in the 30-70 range. This trend was attributed to enhanced interfacial charge transfer and the light-driven generation and regeneration of virucidal Cu(I) species. Durability tests confirmed that the filters maintained virucidal activity over multiple reuse cycles, owing to a regenerative Cu(II)/Cu(I) redox mechanism. Collectively, these findings establish CuxO-TiO2-embedded nanofiber filters as scalable and semi-permanent antiviral materials, offering a robust alternative to conventional disposable filters and a transferable design strategy for next-generation personal protective equipment and air purification technologies.

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