Antibacterial and Antifungal Properties of Electrospun Recycled PET Polymeric Fibers Functionalized with Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles.

Currently, to reduce the environmental problems associated with plastic waste, methods are being sought to use this waste as raw materials in different applications, such as fibers. In addition, to improve these materials and provide different properties, nanoparticles (NPs) are incorporated. In the present work, polymeric fibers made of recycled polyethylene terephthalate (r-PET) from post-consumer water bottles, functionalized with 0%, 1.5%, 3% and 6% zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO-NPs) in function of r-PET weight, were elaborated to evaluate their antibacterial and antifungal characteristics. The ZnO-NPs were synthesized by the solvothermal method, obtaining particles with a mean diameter of 38.15 nm, while the fibers were obtained by electrospinning with a diameter range between 200-5000 nm. The functionalized fibers were carried out against Escherichia coli and Bacillus subtilis through the agar diffusion method, obtaining the highest inhibition halo at 6% w/w ZnO-NPs, being 26.5 mm and 34.25 mm, respectively. In addition, the same method was used to evaluate the antifungal activity of Penicillium s.p. and Fusarium graminearum, observing antifungal properties due to the presence of nanoparticles in the fibers.

Simultaneous effects of pH and substrate concentration on hydrogen production by acidogenic fermentation / Efectos simultáneos del pH y la concentración de sustrato en la producción de hidrógeno mediante fermentación acidogénica

The present research examined the effects of initial substrate concentration and pH on the yield and productivity of hydrogen production by acidogenic fermentation. Assays were carried out at three different initial pH levels (5.5, 6.5 and 7.5) and three initial substrate concentrations (3, 5 and 10 g COD/L). Glucose was used as carbon source and the experiments were conducted at 37°C in batch tests, after a thermal pretreatment to eliminate methanogenic microorganisms. Conversions of glucose into hydrogen were between 16.75 and 27.25 percent of theoretical maximum, and high values of hydrogen productivity were obtained. An optimum value for the yield of glucose between initial pH of 6.3 and 3.7 g COD/L and productivity of the 5.95 H2/gVSS h and initial pH of 6.7 and 10 g COD/L were obtained from the response surface.