STEM Month
Abstract
Airborne viruses are the leading causes of disease and even death in public settings. For instance, the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in 768 million cases. Air filters improve air quality and remove airborne pathogens that detrimentally affect health. However, current antiviral air filters such as HEPA filters and face masks are impractical for hospital and public settings. Electrically conductive air filters are favorable for antiviral air purification, as they are inexpensive and energy-efficient. Among electrically conductive air filters, laser-induced graphene-based electrified air filters are a promising technology, but they require a voltage greater than 20 V to inactivate the virus. MXenes have high electronic conductivity, good solution processing properties, and allow for antiviral air filtration at less than 2 V.
To develop a MXene-based electrified air filtration system to allow for enhanced airborne pathogen removal at a low voltage, the MXene was synthesized through the LiF-HCl-based etching method. Next, the MXene-coated air filters were fabricated through spray-coating. Finally, antiviral air filtration tests were conducted for efficiency in removing the virus.
One result was the successful synthesis of the Ti3C2Tx MXene colloidal solution with a high concentration of approximately 10 mg/mL. Additionally, MXene-coated conductive air filters with different loadings and conductivities were fabricated. The experiments demonstrated that the antiviral performance of MXene-based coating surpassed graphene-based coating at a low voltage of 0.2 V. MXene-based air filters are a cost-effective air filtration method, leading to improvements in public health and the economy.
Recommended Citation
Kapadia, Riya R.
(2022)
"NJIT STEM For Success Report,"
STEM Month: Vol. 2:
Iss.
1, Article 13.
Available at:
https://digitalcommons.njit.edu/stemmonth/vol2/iss1/13