Durable and Washable Antibacterial Copper Nanoparticles Bridged by Surface Grafting Polymer Brushes on Cotton and Polymeric Materials

Abstract

To increase the durability of antibacterial coating on cotton and polymeric substrates, surface initiated grafting polymer brushes are introduced onto the substrates surface to bridge copper nanoparticles coatings and substrate. The morphologies of the composites consisting of the copper nanoparticles and polymer brushes were characterized with scanning electron microscopy (SEM). It was found that copper nanoparticles were uniformly and firmly distributed on the surfaces of the substrates by the polymer brushes; meanwhile, the reinforced concrete-like structures were formed in the composite materials. The substrates coated by the copper nanoparticles showed the efficient antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) and Escherichia coli (E. coli) even after washing by 30 cycles. The copper nanoparticles were tethered on the substrates by the strong chemical bonds, which led to the excellent washable fitness and durability. The change of the phase structure of the copper was analyzed to investigate the release mechanism of copper ions.

Antibacterial and Antiviral Functional Materials: Chemistry and Biological Activity toward Tackling COVID-19-like Pandemics

“…Fabric coated using Cu NPs showed excellent antibacterial activity against S. aureus and E. coli after 30 cycles of washing. 408 Borkow et al developed a novel platform technology where copper oxide was impregnated into the polymeric fibers or cotton fibers, rendering fibers with potential broad-spectrum antiviral, antibacterial, antifungal, and antimite properties. This technology enabled the mass production of nonwoven and woven fabrics with no alteration requirement for industrial procedures.…”

Towards advanced wound regeneration

“…In terms of the current applications of polymers within the field of regenerative medicine, various different aspects have been explored, including the aspect of antimicrobial applications, where polymer wafers are doped with nano-metals to form a polymer-nano-metal composite. One of the most popular composites is the nanosilver polymer composite which has been reported to have high antibacterial performance [97][98][99], other well reported antimicrobial nano-metal polymer composites include copper [100][101][102] and gold [103,104]. Other aspects of polymer usage include its application in wound healing [105].…”

Use of Copper Microparticles in SEBS/PP Compounds. Part 1: Effects on Morphology, Thermal, Physical, Mechanical and Antibacterial Properties

“…Sun at al. 12 claim that, undoubtedly, killing bacteria process of copper started from the copper ions release. This confirms the one published by Delgado at al.…”

“…Moreover, antimicrobial polymers are used as a strategy to prevent hospital-acquired infections 3, 4 . Several publications report studies about the use of polymer/cooper formulations in antimicrobial applications 3, [5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12] . However, except for previous work published by our research group on the use of copper nanoparticles 13 , publications based on SEBS/PP blends were not found in the literature.…”