Scientists Change Structure of Nanoparticles to Increase Durability of Antibacterial Activity of Fabrics

TEHRAN (INIC)- Iranian researchers from Islamic Azad University introduced the best arrangement for increasing the antibacterial properties of textile products by studying various structures of silver nanoparticles.

By employing the structure presented by the researchers, the amount of nanoparticles stabilization on the fabric and the durability of its antibacterial properties increase after washing and some problems are solved, including the change in the fabric color.

Using the results of this research creates diversity in the application of various structures of nanoparticles in the complementary process of cotton products. Moreover, the color of the fabric does not change as the amount of consumed materials decreases, because the excess use of silver was the cause of this problem. On the other hand, the stability and durability of nanoparticles increase against standard washing. All these facts result in the reduction in production cost and increase the satisfaction of the customers.

The researchers have claimed that in comparison with other structures, hierarchical structure has much better antibacterial activity (more than 91%) even after five sets of standard washing.

“The use of silver nanoparticles in complementary processes for textile products causes some problems such as low efficiency in antibacterial properties, low stabilization and durability, and change in the color of the fabric. Therefore, it is necessary to solve these problems. Taking into account the importance of the subject, we tried to produce silver nanoparticles in different shapes, structures and sizes and we stabilized them on cotton samples,” Hamed Hajimirzababa, one of the researchers, explained.

Results of the research have been published in Journal of Textile Institute, vol. 105, issue 8, January 2014, pp. 806-813.