Visible-Light Active Flexible and Durable Photocatalytic Antibacterial Ethylene-co-vinyl Acetate—Ag/AgCl/α-Fe<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> Composite Coating
Svetlana Vihodceva,
Andris Šutka,
Maarja Otsus,
Heiki Vija,
Liga Grase,
Anne Kahru,
Kaja Kasemets
Affiliations
Svetlana Vihodceva
The Institute of Materials and Surface Engineering, Faculty of Materials Science and Applied Chemistry, Riga Technical University, 7 Paula Valdena Str., LV-1048 Riga, Latvia
Andris Šutka
The Institute of Materials and Surface Engineering, Faculty of Materials Science and Applied Chemistry, Riga Technical University, 7 Paula Valdena Str., LV-1048 Riga, Latvia
Maarja Otsus
National Institute of Chemical Physics and Biophysics, Laboratory of Environmental Toxicology, Akadeemia tee 23, 12618 Tallinn, Estonia
Heiki Vija
National Institute of Chemical Physics and Biophysics, Laboratory of Environmental Toxicology, Akadeemia tee 23, 12618 Tallinn, Estonia
Liga Grase
The Institute of Materials and Surface Engineering, Faculty of Materials Science and Applied Chemistry, Riga Technical University, 7 Paula Valdena Str., LV-1048 Riga, Latvia
Anne Kahru
National Institute of Chemical Physics and Biophysics, Laboratory of Environmental Toxicology, Akadeemia tee 23, 12618 Tallinn, Estonia
Kaja Kasemets
National Institute of Chemical Physics and Biophysics, Laboratory of Environmental Toxicology, Akadeemia tee 23, 12618 Tallinn, Estonia
When particles are mixed in polymer, particle surfaces become passivated by polymer matrix, leading to significantly reduced photocatalytic and, thus, also reduced antibacterial activity, as the catalytic particles become isolated from the outer environment and microorganisms reaching the surface. Herein, we demonstrate a facile and rapid approach for coating preparation at room temperature, yielding good adhesion of particles in combination with the particles’ interface location. Flexible ethylene-co-vinyl acetate Ag/AgCl/α-Fe2O3 composite coatings were prepared by the spin-coating method. The synthesized photocatalytically active coating surface exhibited a distinct and rapid inhibition of bacterial growth, with at least a 7-log reduction of gram-positive bacteria Staphylococcus aureus viability after 30 min of visible-light illumination. We also analyzed the shedding of the Ag-ions and reactive oxygen species production from the composite coating and showed that reactive oxygen species played the main role in the photocatalytic bacterial inactivation, destroying the bacteria cell as proven by the Confocal Laser Scanning Microscopy.
