LAUSR

Abstract This study presents a simple method of titanium dioxide modification by carbon. Monosaccharide (fructose) was used as the carbon source. The pressure modification using fructose caused enhancement of antibacterial efficiency. It was found that prepared photocatalysts were capable of total Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus epidermidis inactivation under the UV-A and artificial solar light, which was attributed to the changes of the surface characteristics, i.e. zeta potential. The best results were observed for the TiO2-F-1%-100 photocatalyst, containing 0.51 wt% of carbon with less negative zeta potential (−18.08 mV). The two-stage photocatalytic mechanism of bacteria destruction by OH radicals was found. Obtained data suggest that fructose-modified photocatalysts may be useful in the development of alternative water disinfectants.