Enhanced antibacterial activity of cotton via silver nanocapsules deposited by atmospheric pressure plasma jet

In this work, the antibacterial activity of cotton containing silver nanocapsules prepared by atmospheric pressure plasma (APP) deposition is investigated. The nanocapsules consist of a shell and a silver nanoparticle (AgNP) core, where the core is used to bring antibacterial activity, and the shell is utilized to suppress the potential toxicity of AgNPs. The surface morphology and the elements of the samples are analyzed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive x-ray and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The SEM results show that the skin of the cotton fibers will fall off gradually after APP treatment over 3 min, and the XPS results show that the Ag content will rise to 1.6% after APP deposition for 10 min. Furthermore, the antimicrobial activity tests show that the reduction rates of Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus can achieve 100% when the sample is treated for 10 min, which exhibits excellent antibacterial activity. In addition, the UV absorption properties of the cotton will also be correspondingly improved, which brings a broader application prospect for antibacterial cotton.