Self-supported and flexible bacterial cellulose (BC) based hybrid membranes were synthesized and decorated with zinc oxide/multi-walled carbon nanotube (ZnO-MWCNT) composite additives in order to modify and tune their surface and bulk properties. Two types of ZnO-MWCNT additives with different morphologies were used in a wide concentration range from 0 to 90% for BC-based hybrids produced by filtration. The novel photoactive membranes have grabbed the attention in the field of environmental protection by employing wastewater treatments and the removal of microorganisms or organic pollutants from wastewater. Here we present a promising self-supported photoactive hybrid membrane for future antimicrobial and water treatment applications. In this study, the efficiency of bacterial cellulose (BC) - zinc oxide (ZnO) - multi walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) hybrid membranes in the adsorption and photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue (MB) under UV radiation and the removal of Escherichia coli (E. Coli) was investigated. It was found that the photocatalytic efficiency is strongly dependent on both the preparation method and the amount of ZnO-MWCNT additives loaded into the hybrid membranes. The characterization of BC-ZnO-MWCNT membranes was done using focus ion beam scanning electron microscopy (FIB-SEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP), X-ray micro computed tomography (μCT), dynamic light scattering (DLS), contact angle measurement, surface area measurement (BET) and Raman spectroscopy to study the morphological aspect of the prepared-membranes. The promising results of this study could provide a new pathway in the field of photocatalysed-based water treatment technology by the application of hybrid membranes.
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