Protective Multifunctional Fibrous Systems Based on Natural Fibers and Metal Oxide Nanoparticles

Abstract

In recent years, an unprecedented increase in the development of products and technologies to protect the human being has been observed. Now, more than ever, the world population is exposed to several threats, harmful to their well-being and health. Chemical and biological hazardous agents stand out as one of the biggest threats, not only for the military forces, but also for the civilians. Consequently, it’s essential to develop personal protective systems that are able to protect their user, not only passively, but actively, being able to detect, adsorb, degrade and decontaminate pesticides, pollutants, microorganisms and most importantly: chemical/biological warfare agents. One recent strategy for the development of active fibrous structures with improved functions and new properties is their functionalization with nanoparticles (NPs), especially metal oxides. Although their known effectiveness in the decomposition of harmful agents, the NPs could also include other functionalities in the same structure using low quantities of material, without adding extra weight, which is of huge importance for a soldier in the battlefield. The use of natural fibers as the substrate is also very interesting, since this material is a much sustainable alternative when compared to synthetic ones, also providing excellent properties.

The dual activity of CaONPs as a cancer treatment substance and at the same time resistance to harmful microbes

“…Candida albicans were killed after 4 h at (200 μg/ml), and (250 μg/ml). CaONPs could be used as universal antimicrobial substances due to their strong biocidal effect against microorganisms, which have been used over the past decades to prevent and treat various diseases 39 . Recently, non-hazardous CaONPs can easily be synthesized using a cost-effective method and tested as a new type of antimicrobial agent 37 .…”

Recent Trends in Protective Textiles against Biological Threats: A Focus on Biological Warfare Agents

“…In their daily lives, the world population is exposed to several threats that put their wellbeing and health at risk. Chemicals and BWAs are some of these threats [1]. BWAs include bacteria, viruses, fungi, and biological toxins and are responsible for several diseases such as anthrax, plague, tularemia, botulism, smallpox, and viral hemorrhagic fever [2,3].…”

“…Selectively permeable fabrics are important to improving the user's comfort by reducing the airflow through the fabric layers while keeping a high water-vapor permeability [114]. As an example, the integration of electrospun nanofiber membranes in textile fibrous structures produces a high aerosol filtration efficiency, good air permeability, low surface density, and low-pressure loss, thanks to the small but highly interconnected pores and large surface area of built nanofibers [1,114]. In addition, active protection appeared as a promising concept to detect and inactivate/degrade microorganisms and BWAs, while considering that materials capable of responding to their environment may achieve optimal performance under a much wider set of conditions [1,113].…”

“…As an example, the integration of electrospun nanofiber membranes in textile fibrous structures produces a high aerosol filtration efficiency, good air permeability, low surface density, and low-pressure loss, thanks to the small but highly interconnected pores and large surface area of built nanofibers [1,114]. In addition, active protection appeared as a promising concept to detect and inactivate/degrade microorganisms and BWAs, while considering that materials capable of responding to their environment may achieve optimal performance under a much wider set of conditions [1,113]. This can be achieved either by using fibers such as the ones prepared via electrospinning or by functionalizing textiles with nanomaterials that possess those capabilities.…”

Antibacterial and Biodegradable Electrospun Filtering Membranes for Facemasks: An Attempt to Reduce Disposable Masks Use

“…One possible approach to develop active filter layers is by the addition of antimicrobial agents, such as NPs. Their nanoscale size and large surface area-to-volume ratio give NPs unique characteristics, improving their catalytic, magnetic, mechanical and optical properties [15,16]. Several metal and metal oxide NPs, such as Ag, TiO 2 and MgO, have been explored as effective antimicrobial agents against several microorganisms, such as bacteria, viruses and fungi [17,18].…”