In this study, fibrous membranes from recycled-poly(ethylene terephthalate)/silk fibroin (r-PSF) were prepared by electrospinning for filtration applications. The effect of silk fibroin on morphology, fibers diameters, pores size, wettability, chemical structure, thermo-mechanical properties, filtration efficiency, filtration performance, and comfort properties such as air and water vapor permeability was investigated. The filtration efficiency (FE) and quality factor (Qf), which represents filtration performance, were calculated from penetration through the membranes using aerosol particles ranging from 120 nm to 2.46 μm. The fiber diameter influenced both FE and Qf. However, the basis weight of the membranes has an effect, especially on the FE. The prepared membranes were classified according to EN149, and the most effective was assigned to the class FFP1 and according to EN1822 to the class H13. The impact of silk fibroin on the air permeability was assessed. Furthermore, the antibacterial activity against bacteria S. aureus and E. coli and biocompatibility were evaluated. It is discussed that antibacterial activity depends not only on the type of used materials but also on fibrous membranes’ surface wettability. In vitro biocompatibility of the selected samples was studied, and it was proven to be of the non-cytotoxic effect of the keratinocytes (HaCaT) after 48 h of incubation.

Silk fibroin is a biocompatible, non-toxic, mechanically robust protein, and it is commonly used and studied as a material for biomedical applications. Silk fibroin also gained particular interest as a drug carrier vehicle, and numerous silk formats have been investigated for this purpose. Herein, we have prepared electrospun nanofibers from pure silk fibroin and blended silk fibroin/casein, followed by the incorporation of an anti-inflammatory drug, diclofenac. Casein serves as an excipient in pharmaceutical products and has a positive effect on the gradual release of drugs. The characteristics of the investigated composites were estimated by scanning electron microscope, transmission electron microscope, thermogravimetric analysis, and a lifetime of diclofenac by electron paramagnetic resonance analysis. The cumulative release in vitro of diclofenac sodium salt, together with the antiproliferative effect of diclofenac sodium salt-loaded silk nanofibers against the growth of two cancer cell lines, are presented and discussed.

Composite materials based on Cu matrix have a wide range of applications because of their extraordinary features such as high thermal conductivity and high mechanical strength. The preparation of Cu-ZrB2 and CuCr1Zr-ZrB2 composites via gas pressure infiltration technology is described in this work. In contrast to most ceramic materials, ZrB2 is electrically and thermally conductive. All tested samples, i.e. prepared from the ZrB2 porous preform with a porosity of 40 % were infiltrated with molten Cu or CuCr1Zr alloy. Microstructure and homogeneity after infiltration were examined by SEM-EDS microscopy. The interface between the Cu matrix and ZrB2 ceramics was explored by TEM microscopy. As-infiltrated composites were thermally cycled up to 800 • C with heating and cooling rates of 3 • C min −1 in an argon atmosphere.