WATER-BASED ACRYLIC POLYMER/ZnO-Ag NANOCOMPOSITE COATING FOR ANTIBACTERIAL APPLICATION

The goal of this work is to study the antibacterial activity of acrylic polymer/ZnO-Ag nanocomposite coating. First, in the presence of UV light (lambda = 253.7 nm), Ag nanoparticles (NPs; derived from AgNO3 precursor) were photoreduced and deposited on the surface of nano-ZnO. Field emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM) images indicated that the AgNPs (5-15 nm) were deposited on the surface of nano-ZnO (20-40 nm). These ZnO-Ag nanohybrids (0.1-0.2 wt.%) were incorporated into the acrylic polymer matrix using ultrasonication to form the nanocomposite coating (similar to 25 mu m thick). Nano-ZnO hybridized with AgNPs resulted in a decrease in the energy gap (E-g) of ZnO from 3.2 eV to 2.7 eV, as observed by diffused reflectance UV-Vis spectrum analysis. The abrasion resistance test indicated that the incorporation of hybrid NPs enhanced the abrasion resistance of the polymer coating (from 81 to 1251/mil). Moreover, the polymer nanocomposite coating showed high antibacterial efficacy against E. coli and S. aureus in antibacterial tests and achieved 1.8 and 1.2 log after 24 h, respectively. These findings endorse that the ZnO-Ag nanohybrid-based water-borne nanocomposite coatings offer exceptional antibacterial efficiency and would be promising in this application.