Abstract
In our study, the surface of bacterial cellulose was successively modified by copper and zinc oxide nanoparticles using direct current (DC) magnetron sputtering and radio frequency (RF) reactive sputter coating techniques. The target materials, copper and zinc, were 99.99% pure and used in the presence of argon (Ar) gas, while zinc nanoparticles were sputtered in the presence of oxygen gas to make zinc oxide nanoparticles. The as-prepared bacterial cellulose/copper/zinc oxide nanocomposite has good ultraviolet resistance, anti-static and antibacterial characteristics. The surface morphology and chemical composition of the nanocomposite were examined by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopic (EDS) techniques. The prepared bacterial cellulose/copper/zinc oxide nanocomposite illustrates excellent ultraviolet resistance (T.UVA%; 0.16 ± 0.02, T.UVB%; 0.07 ± 0.01, ultraviolet protection factor (UPF); 1850.33 ± 2.12), antistatic behavior (S.H.P; 51.50 ± 4.10, I.E. V; 349.33 ± 6.02) and antibacterial behavior (Escherichia coli; 98.45%, Staphylococcus aureus; 98.11%). Our nanocomposite prepared by sputter coating method could be a promising and effective candidate for ultraviolet resistance, antistatic and antibacterial in term of functional, technical, medical and in many daily life applications.
Highlights
In the modern age, metallic semiconductor nanocomposites are studied extensively due to their high potential for applicability in daily life [1,2,3,4,5]
Our study revealed that the deposition of copper and zinc oxide nanoparticles on bacterial cellulose by the magnetron sputter coating technique makes an excellent nanocomposite candidate for UV-resistance/antistatic/antibacterial characteristics
X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) test was employed to find out the surface morphology and chemical composition of bacterial cellulose/copper/zinc oxide nanocomposite
Summary
Metallic semiconductor nanocomposites are studied extensively due to their high potential for applicability in daily life [1,2,3,4,5]. Copper and zinc oxide nanoparticles are used abundantly for the formation of nanocomposites with polymers and cellulosic materials; copper has excellent electrical, optical and chemical properties, whereas zinc oxide possesses high binding energy, performs efficient photocatalysis, and has excellent thermal properties These types of metals and metals oxide are eco-friendly, on top of being low cost with non-toxic behavior and available commercially [6,7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14]. Copper nanoparticles have good antibacterial and thermal characteristics; in addition, their metallic ions can restrict the activities of proteins clusters and improve the surface of the film Because of their biodegradability and high stability, they are suitable to be used with cellulosic materials [15].
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