INST Mohali develops eco-friendly ML-enabled PLA-ZnO nanofiber filter for dye-laden wastewater treatment

Key facts

• The Institute of Nano Science and Technology (INST) Mohali, an autonomous institute of the Department of Science and Technology (DST), developed a machine learning enabled filter integrating green-synthesized zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles with biodegradable polylactic acid (PLA) nanofibers for treating dye-contaminated wastewater.
• ZnO nanoparticles were synthesized using turmeric extract, with bioactive compounds like curcumin, flavonoids and phenolic compounds acting as reducing and stabilizing agents, avoiding harmful reagents.
• PLA-ZnO nanofibers were fabricated through electrospinning, producing a porous, high-surface-area, mechanically stable catalytic membrane that combines photocatalysis and piezocatalysis, with mechanical vibrations generating piezoelectric polarization that suppresses electron-hole recombination.
• The PLA-ZnO nanofibers achieved 98.6% methylene blue (MB) and 96.7% Congo red (CR) decolorization within 120 minutes under combined light and ultrasonic excitation.
• The material showed antibacterial activity, inactivating approximately 75% of E. coli and 71% of S. aureus after 6 hours.
• Machine learning was used to predict dye-decolorization behaviour from parameters such as wavelength, time, catalyst amount, ultrasonic frequency, light intensity and dye concentration.
• The work was published in the journal Advanced Functional Materials (Wiley).