Antibacterial cotton fabrics via immobilizing silver phosphate nanoparticles onto the chitosan nanofiber coating

Development of chitosan nanofiber (CNF)/nano‑silver phosphate (Ag₃PO₄) coatings is reported for the fabrication of antibacterial cotton fabrics. The surface morphology and chemical composition were evaluated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), respectively. SEM results revealed that Ag₃PO₄ have formed micron-scale clusters and were not completely deposited on the fabric's surface whereas CNFs properly coated the fabric. However, once the hybrid of CNFs and Ag₃PO₄ was utilized, nanoparticles were better deposited on the fabric. The porous and nano-fibrous structure of CNFs provided an ideal substrate to which nanoparticles tightly adhered. The antibacterial activity of the as-synthesized Ag₃PO₄ nanoparticles was demonstrated by measuring the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC). Moreover, the antibacterial property of the coated fabrics was demonstrated by colony counting method and zone of inhibition (ZOI). The bacterial adhesion reductions for CNF/Ag₃PO₄ coated fabrics were obtained as 100 and 99.8% against S. aureus and E. coli, respectively. Moreover, ZOI was highly increased in the case of the hybrid coating. The results demonstrated the promising potential of CNF/Ag₃PO₄ coatings for the fabrication of antibacterial cotton fabrics to be used as antibacterial garments for clinical environments.