Cellulose-based photocatalytic paper with Ag2O nanoparticles loaded on graphite fibers

TiO2 nanoparticle is the most extensively used photocatalyst for photocatalytic paper. However, TiO2 nanoparticle is active only under UV light that accounted for less than 5% of the solar light energy. There is a need to develop a photocatalytic paper with full spectrum photoactivity. Herein, a full spectrum photocatalytic paper was fabricated by incorporating cellulose fibers with graphite fibers which were pre-loaded with Ag2O nanoparticles. X-ray diffraction (XRD) testing and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) examination confirmed the loading of the Ag2O nanoparticles onto the graphite fibers. The photocatalytic activity of the paper was evaluated with the degradation of methyl orange (MO) under ultraviolet, visible or near-infrared light irradiation. It was found that the degradation rate of MO could reach 32%, 19% and 19% under UV, visible and NIR light, respectively after 3 h of irradiation. Meanwhile, the photocatalytic paper was very stable and can be reused repeatedly. Antibacterial tests showed that the photocatalytic paper could inhibit Escherichia coli (E. coli) growth under office lighting condition.