Materials Research (Aug 2023)

Development of Biodegradable Polymeric Films Added with CuO-NPS and Evaluation of Their Antifungal Activity

  • Kassyara Évelyn Costa,
  • Luciano Luiz Silva,
  • Maria Ana Pignatel Marcon Martins,
  • Janaina dos Santos,
  • Micheli Zanetti,
  • Franciele Dalcanton,
  • Alexandra Monego Bugiereck,
  • Gustavo Lopes Colpani,
  • Carolina Riviera Duarte Maluche Baretta,
  • Márcio Antônio Fiori,
  • Josiane Maria Muneron de Mello

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1590/1980-5373-mr-2022-0626
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 26, no. suppl 1

Abstract

Read online Read online

This research was aimed to obtain biodegradable polymeric films with antifungal action against Aspergillus niger, through the addition of copper oxide nanoparticles (CuO-NPs) in the commercial polymer (Ecoflex®) and to evaluate its mechanical, morphological, biodegradation, and copper release properties. The microbiological results showed that the films with 4 wt% CuO-NPs inhibited 97.57% the growth of the fungus growth of 1×105 spores·mL-1 compared to the control. The morphological characterization revealed that the CuO-NPs presented irregular form with particles size of 50 to 400 nm and the XRD showed characteristic peaks of copper oxide. The addition of CuO-NPs to Ecoflex® provided increased maximum and rupture tension, strain, and elasticity modulus the obtained films with 1 wt% CuO-NPs and did not alter the biodegradability of the films. It can be said that, through the addition of CuO-NPs to Ecoflex®, it was possible to add antifungal activity for Aspergillus niger without compromising its biodegradability, meeting the safety standards established by legislation regarding the release of copper.

Keywords