Few Layered Oxidized h-BN as Nanofiller of Cellulose-Based Paper with Superior Antibacterial Response and Enhanced Mechanical/Thermal Performance

Abstract

In this study, hexagonal boron nitride nanosheets enriched with hydroxyl groups (h-BN-OH) were successfully grafted on the surface of cellulose fibers after the simple and effective exfoliation and oxidation of bulk h-BN. OH groups of h-BN-OH and the ones presented on the surface of cellulose fibers interacted via hydrogen bonding. Both spectroscopic (FT-IR, XRD) and microscopic (TEM, SEM, and atomic force microscopy (AFM)) methods results proved the successful functionalization of the cellulose fibers with the nanomaterial. Modified cellulose fibers were used to prepare paper sheets samples with different concentrations of the nanomaterial (1 wt %, 2 wt %, and 3 wt %). All the samples were tested for the antibacterial properties via the colony forming unit method and exhibited good performance against both Gram-negative (E. coli) and Gram-positive (S. epidermidis) model bacteria. Additionally, the influence of the volume of working bacterial suspension on the antibacterial efficiency of the obtained materials was examined. The results showed significantly better antibacterial performance when the volume of bacterial suspension was reduced. Mechanical properties of the paper samples with and without nanofiller were also characterized. Tensile strength, tearing strength, and bursting strength of the paper samples containing only 2 wt % of the nanofiller were improved by 60%, 61%, and 118% in comparison to the control paper samples, respectively. Furthermore, the nanofiller improved the thermal properties of the composite paper—the heat release rate decreased by up to 11.6%. Therefore, the composite paper can be further explored in a wide range of antibacterial materials, such as packaging or paper coatings

Boron nitride nanosheets supported highly homogeneous bimetallic AuPd alloy nanoparticles catalyst for hydrogen production from formic acid

“…The thicknesses of two usual BNNS calculated via an AFM were 4.85, and 6.7 nm, respectively (figure 1(a)). The thickness of 19 pieces of BNNS was measured by analyzing AFM images, the average thickness size of BNNSs is 4.43 nm as shown in figure 5(b), which corresponds to 10-15 layers of nanosheets [50].…”

Boron Nitride Nanosheets Can Induce Water Channels Across Lipid Bilayers Leading to Lysosomal Permeabilization

“…[ 33 ] In other recent studies, hBN sheets doped with zirconium or grafted onto the surface of cellulose fibers were exploited as new antibacterial complexes. [ 34,35 ] Hitherto, only a few in vitro and in vivo toxicity studies have been performed using hBN, often with conflicting results. For example, sheet‐like BN materials were reported to produce multiple adverse effects on human hepatoma HepG2 cells, such as decreasing cell viability, enhancing intracellular ROS production, causing mitochondrial depolarization, and inducing damage to membrane integrity.…”

Dual‐Modified Electrospun Fiber Membrane as Separator with Excellent Safety Performance and High Operating Temperature for Lithium‐Ion Batteries

“…[ 36 ] It could be delaminated in a mixture solution of IPA and PVP by stirring at room temperature for 4 h and followed by ultrasonic treatment for 5 h at a power of 300 W. The BN nanosheets suspension is centrifuged at 5000 rpm for 30 min, the XRD pattern of the obtained slurry in wet state still gives similar peaks, but the crystalline becomes obviously weaker in striking contrast to that of the bulk h‐BN (Figure S2, Supporting Information), suggesting that the bulk H‐BN is exfoliated and the delaminated BNNSs are in irregular orientation in the slurry. [ 37 ] TEM image shows a large nanosheet morphology and EDS‐mapping images show that B and N elements are evenly distributed in BNNSs (Figure S3, Supporting Information). Also, HR‐TEM image gives clear lattice fringes with a crystal plane spacing of 0.36 nm corresponding to the (002) crystal plane of BN, [ 38 ] indicating that the delaminated BNNSs still maintain a good crystal structure (Figure S4, Supporting Information).…”