Ultrasound-assisted coating of nylon 6,6 with silver nanoparticles and its antibacterial activity

A silver / nylon 6,6 nanocomposite containing 1 wt % metallic silver has been produced from an aqueous solution of silver nitrate in the presence of ammonia and ethylene glycol by an ultrasound-assisted reduction method. The structure and properties of nylon 6,6 coated with silver have been characterized with X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, and diffused reflection spectroscopy measurements. The nanocrystals of pure silver, 50-100 nm in size, are finely dispersed on the polymer surface without damaging the nylon 6,6 structure. This silver-nylon nanocomposite is stable to many washing cycles and thus can be used as a master batch for the production of nylon yarn by melting and spinning processes. The fabric knitted from this yarn has shown excellent antimicrobial properties. (c) 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Last Updated Date : 14/01/2015