The Use of TiO2 as a Disinfectant in Water Sanitation Applications

Abstract

Waterborne diseases produced by organisms of public health concern are prevalent worldwide, continuing to cause deaths annually. Conventional disinfectants (ozone, UV radiation, chlorine) have been insufficient in providing safe water as many studies revealed. TiO2 is an attractive alternative to conventional methods because of its versatility and recently explored biocidal capacity due to advanced oxidation processes. The oligodynamic effect that TiO2 seems to have on some microorganisms consists of effective lipid hyper oxidation of microorganism membranes, as well as protein interactions that lead to the alteration of the internal conditions and the inhibition of metabolic processes that eventually lead to their lysis. Nevertheless, a satisfactory description of other organisms is necessary to complete the disinfectant–organism interaction, and then the subsequent evaluation parameters of sanitation should proceed. In addition, solutions for feasibility, standardization of results for achieving consistent results and defined applications, lower costs, scalability, and security after its application need to be studied. Understanding its usage implies knowing the actual state of the art and its limitations for water disinfection purposes, as well as the potential benefits that overcoming such limitations would provide, thus allowing the possibility of establishing it as a feasible and popular technology.