Zinc oxide nanoparticles attached to polyacrylonitrile nanofibers with hinokitiol as gluing agent for synergistic antibacterial activities and effective dye removal

[Display omitted] The synthesis of composite nanofibers comprised of polyacrylonitrile (PAN), zinc oxide, and hinokitiol (HT) was introduced for bactericidal exertion and dye removal. The ZnO-HT-PAN_H showed better dye-removing or antibacterial results in comparison with using either zinc oxide or HT embedded in PAN nanofibers. The resulted PAN nanofibers containing mere ZnO were proved to be holding nanoparticles loosely, which was undesirable for dye removal on account of the irretrievable distribution of particles into the liquid environment. With the gluing effect of HT, ZnO nanoparticles were bound together and thus the dye adsorption was improved. In the present study, all samples were characterized by SEM-EDS, TEM, FTIR, XRD, XPS, tensile testing, and water contact angle. The antibacterial properties were assessed against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus, presenting superior inhibition zones, revealing the synergistic actions of HT and zinc oxide. The dye removing effects, evaluated against reactive blue 19 and reactive red 195 throughout 26h, also exhibited improved adsorption without leaching phenomena. The maximum adsorption capacity of ZnO-HT-PAN_H was 267.37 and 245.76mg/g for RB 19 and RR 195, respectively. The composite nanofibers with antibacterial properties and dye adsorption capacity also showed excellent self-cleaning performance under UV radiation.