Graphene Oxide Reinforced Polycarbonate Nanocomposite Films with Antibacterial Properties

R Mahendran,D Sridharan,K Santhakumar,T A Selvakumar,J.-H Jang,P Rajasekar

doi:10.1155/2016/4169409

Abstract

The incorporation of carbonaceous nanofillers into polymers can result in significant materials with improved physicochemical properties and novel composite functionalities. In this study, we have fabricated antibacterial, lightweight, transparent, and flexible graphene oxide (GO) reinforced polycarbonate thin films by a facile and low-cost methodology. Solution blending is employed to get a homogeneous mixture of PC-GO composites at various loading of GO, and the thin films are prepared by dry-wet phase inversion technique. Thermal studies and micrographs of the films revealed the incorporation of GO in PC matrix. Microstructure of the thin films showed the homogeneous dispersion of GO at micro- and nanoscales; however, at higher loading of GO (0.7%), significant agglomeration is observed. More importantly, PC-GO composite films exhibited excellent antibacterial activities against E. coli and S. aureus, owing to the antibacterial nature of GO nanoparticles.

Highlights

Antibacterial nanomaterials possess the ability to inhibit/ destroy the growth of the bacteria; they are effectively used in biomedical devices, biomechanics, and tissue engineering applications [1]
We have investigated the antibacterial activity of PC-graphene oxide (GO), PC, and GO against S. aureus and E. coli
The thicknesses of the PC and PC-GO thin films were clearly measured by using Digimatic Micrometer (Mitutoyo, Series 293 MDC-MX Lite) and the FE-SEM images

Summary

Introduction

Antibacterial nanomaterials possess the ability to inhibit/ destroy the growth of the bacteria; they are effectively used in biomedical devices, biomechanics, and tissue engineering applications [1]. Silver nanoparticles are being used as antibacterial materials in biomedical devices; they have certain drawbacks such as high cost, scalability, toxicity to the environment, and problems in disposal of the wastes [3]. The aromatic nature of the C-C bond of the graphene makes them chemically stable and inert [8]. These drawbacks could be overcome by using functionalized graphenes, graphene oxide (GO), which possesses oxygen functionalities (carboxyl, hydroxyl, and epoxy groups) and is well dispersed in water and some organic solvents [9, 10]

Methods

Results

Conclusion