Publications de César Pulgarin

TiO2/rough surface of woven cotton fabrics prepared by spin coating for antibacterial and self-cleaning processes

TiO2 has been widely used in developing self-cleaning coatings on textiles. Spin coating is widely used to prepare films due to its simplicity and the ability to control the thickness and the characteristics of the deposited layers. However, it has been sp ...

2025

First evidence that antibiotic-resistant bacteria are inactivated by chemical species produced through the solar photosensitization of ciprofloxacin in water

César Pulgarin

For the first time, using a chemical pollutant (an antibiotic) as a photosensitizer to improve the elimination of a microbiological contaminant of emerging concern (antibiotic-resistant bacteria) is presented. The effect of ciprofloxacin (CIP) on the inact ...

2025

Acids from fruits generate photoactive Fe-complexes, enhancing solar disinfection of water (SODIS): A systematic study of the novel " fruto-Fenton " process, effective over a wide pH range (4-9)

César Pulgarin, Aline Laetitia Schaub, Stefanos Giannakis, Giulio Farinelli, Mona Kohantorabi

This study aimed to enhance solar disinfection (SODIS) by the photo-Fenton process, operated at natural pH, through the re-utilization of fruit wastes. For this purpose, pure organic acids present in fruits and alimentary wastes were tested and compared wi ...

Pergamon-Elsevier Science Ltd2024

Homogeneous vs. heterogeneous photo-Fenton elimination of antibiotic-resistant bacteria bearing intracellular or extracellular resistance: Do resistance mechanisms interfere with disinfection pathways?

César Pulgarin, Stefanos Giannakis, Truong-Thien Melvin Le, Jérémie Decker

The present study aimed to fill the knowledge gap between the implications of intracellular and extracellular antibiotic resistance mechanisms may inflict on the inactivation pathways of the photo-Fenton process under mild conditions. It was thus designed ...

Elsevier Sci Ltd2024

Photo-Fenton inactivation of MS2 bacteriophage at alkaline pH by Fe salts or nm to μm-sized oxides, and the Janus-faced effects of natural organic matter in surface waters

César Pulgarin, Stefanos Giannakis, Ogadimma Cassandra Oji-Okoro, Giulio Farinelli

In this study, MS2 bacteriophage was inactivated by homogeneous and heterogeneous photo-Fenton processes in an alkaline matrix (pH 8) using low concentrations of H2O2 and iron forms (1 mg/L), including Fe(II), Fe(III), and Fe (hydr)oxides. As a reference, ...

Elsevier2024

Solar disinfection of drinking water at alkaline pH, assisted by ashes of spices and herbs containing catalytic metals, in a novel ?phyto-Fenton? process

Michaël Bensimon, César Pulgarin

In this manuscript, the improvement of solar disinfection (SODIS) for water treatment through the photo-Fenton reaction using iron replacements, namely calcined herbs and spices (thyme, cumin, cinnamon, ginger, and cocoa), naturally containing high content ...

ELSEVIER SCIENCE SA2023

Sunshine and a pinch of tropical soils: A natural, low-cost photo-Fenton variation for safer water, assisted by H2O2 or percabonate

Michaël Bensimon, César Pulgarin, Stefanos Giannakis, Jérémie Decker, Thomas Guillaume

Clean water is essential for human survival, but access to safe drinking water remains a challenge in resource -limited regions. Herein, we explored a low-cost but effective solution for water potabilization using natural iron sources from soils along with ...

ELSEVIER2023

Why five decades of massive research on heterogeneous photocatalysis, especially on TiO2, has not yet driven to water disinfection and detoxification applications? Critical review of drawbacks and challenges

César Pulgarin, Julian Andrés Rengifo Herrera

For fifty years, heterogeneous photocatalysis has been considered as having potential to remove organic and microbiological pollutants from water under either artificial UV light or sunlight irradiation. However, after tens of thousands of published resear ...

Elsevier Science Sa2023

Bacterial inactivation in sunlit surface waters is dominated by reactive species that emanate from the synergy between light, iron, and natural organic matter

César Pulgarin, Stefanos Giannakis, Jun Ma, Da Wang, Shuang Song

In this study, the synergistic and antagonistic effects of Fe species and coexisting natural organic matter (NOM) on the efficacy of solar light disinfection of water are investigated. Different initial iron species (Fe2+/Fe3+) and naturalorganic matter ty ...

Elsevier2023

Predicting the bactericidal efficacy of solar disinfection (SODIS): from kinetic modeling of in vitro tests towards the in silico forecast of E. coli inactivation

César Pulgarin

In this study, the possibility of predicting the efficacy of Solar water disinfection (SODIS) for the removal of bacterial pathogens was assessed by the development of a three-level plan: firstly, systematic E. coli inactivation was performed (in vitro) in ...

ELSEVIER SCIENCE SA2022

TiO2/spacer succinate films grafted onto nylon as a new approach to develop self-cleaning textile fibers that remove stains: a promising way to reduce reliance on cleaning water

Juan Kiwi, César Pulgarin

Succinic acid was used as a spacer to bind titanium dioxide onto nylon as a new approach to develop self-cleaning fibers. Photoinduced decomposition of stains was achieved within acceptable times under ultraviolet A irradiation, a component of both solar l ...

SPRINGER2022

Identifying the mediators of intracellular E. coli inactivation under UVA light: The (photo) Fenton process and singlet oxygen

César Pulgarin, Stefanos Giannakis

Solar disinfection (SODIS) was probed for its underlying mechanism. When Escherichia coli was exposed to UVA irradiation, the dominant solar fraction acting in SODIS process, cells exhibited a shoulder before death ensued. This profile resembles cell killi ...

PERGAMON-ELSEVIER SCIENCE LTD2022

Mechanistic modelling of solar disinfection (SODIS) kinetics of Escherichia coli, enhanced with H2O2 - part 1: The dark side of peroxide

César Pulgarin, Stefanos Giannakis, Ling Feng

The present bi-partite work describes the development and validation of a mechanistic kinetic model of SODIS E. coli inactivation, enhanced with H2O2. In this first part, the mechanism of the baseline dark phenomena is modelled. A mechanistic model involvi ...

ELSEVIER SCIENCE SA2022

A critical review on N-modified TiO2 limits to treat chemical and biological contaminants in water. Evidence that enhanced visible light absorption does not lead to higher degradation rates under whole solar light

César Pulgarin

Intensive research has been focused on the synthesis of N-modified TiO2 materials having visible light absorption in order to get higher solar photocatalytic degradation rates of pollutants in water. However, an exhaustive revision of the topic underlines ...

ELSEVIER2022

Decrypting the photocatalytic bacterial inactivation of hierarchical flower-like Bi(2)WO6 microspheres induced by surface properties: Experimental studies and ab initio calculations

César Pulgarin, Andrzej Sienkiewicz

Bi2WO6 is considered an effective photocatalyst, even under the visible part of the solar spectrum, and recent advances in the modification of its structure leave promise for harnessing its enhanced effectiveness. Our experimental E. coli disinfection resu ...

ELSEVIER SCIENCE SA2022

Mechanistic modelling of solar disinfection (SODIS) kinetics of Escherichia coli, enhanced with H2O2 - Part 2: Shine on you, crazy peroxide

César Pulgarin, Stefanos Giannakis, Ling Feng

In this second part of the development of a mechanistic kinetic model of the solar inactivation of E. coli enhanced with hydrogen peroxide, we evaluate the mechanisms based on photonic inactivation and integrate them into the kinetic model of the dark proc ...

ELSEVIER SCIENCE SA2022

SODIS potential: A novel parameter to assess the suitability of solar water disinfection worldwide

César Pulgarin, Sofia Samoili, Stefanos Giannakis, Giulio Farinelli

This paper studies the worldwide applicability of solar water disinfection (SODIS) technology through a novel parameter: the SODIS potential. This parameter is defined as the inverse ratio between the required exposure time to achieve a four log disinfecti ...

ELSEVIER SCIENCE SA2021

Irreversible inactivation of carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae and its genes in water by photo-electro-oxidation and photo-electro-Fenton- Processes action modes

César Pulgarin

Carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae is a critical priority pathogen according to the World Health Organization's classification. Effluents of municipal wastewater treatment plants (EWWTP) may be a route for K. pneumoniae dissemination. Herein, the i ...

ELSEVIER2021

An innovative, highly stable Ag/ZIF-67@GO nanocomposite with exceptional peroxymonosulfate (PMS) activation efficacy, for the destruction of chemical and microbiological contaminants under visible light

Michaël Bensimon, César Pulgarin

In this work, Ag nanoparticles were loaded on ZIF-67 covered by graphene oxide (Ag/ZIF-67@GO), and its catalytic performance was studied for the heterogeneous activation of peroxymonosulfate (PMS) under visible-light. The catalyst surface morphology and st ...

ELSEVIER2021

Detrimental vs. beneficial influence of ions during solar (SODIS) and photo-Fenton disinfection of E. coli in water: (Bi)carbonate, chloride, nitrate and nitrite effects

César Pulgarin, Stefanos Giannakis

In this work, we studied the effect of inorganic ions occurring in natural waters on E. coli inactivation by solar and photo-Fenton processes, two crucial methods for drinking water treatment in sunny or developing countries. HCO3-, Cl-, SO42-, NO3-, NO2- ...

2020