Synergistic Antibacterial Surface with Liquid Repellency and Enhanced Photothermal Bactericidal Activity

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Biotechnology
• Surface Chemistry

Background:

• Microbial contamination on surfaces of biomedical devices and food packaging is a significant health concern.
• Superhydrophobic surfaces offer bacterial adhesion resistance but lack durability.
• Photothermal bactericidal surfaces can kill adhered bacteria, complementing superhydrophobic properties.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a robust antibacterial surface with synergistic superhydrophobic and photothermal bactericidal properties.
• To evaluate the efficacy of the developed surface in preventing bacterial adhesion and eliminating adhered bacteria.

Main Methods:

• Fabrication of a superhydrophobic surface with a homogeneous conical array using a copper mesh mask.
• Assessment of bacterial adhesion repulsion using bacterial suspensions.
• Evaluation of photothermal bactericidal activity upon Near-Infrared (NIR) radiation exposure.
• Testing of self-cleaning properties and antibacterial efficacy on various surfaces.

Main Results:

• The fabricated surface demonstrated excellent liquid repellency, repelling 95% of bacteria within 10s and 57% after 1 hour.
• Photothermal graphene effectively eliminated most adhered bacteria under NIR radiation.
• The surface achieved approximately 99.9% bacterial adhesion resistance on both planar and uneven surfaces.
• Deactivated bacteria were easily removed via self-cleaning wash.

Conclusions:

• The developed surface combines superhydrophobic bacterial adhesion resistance with photothermal bactericidal activity for effective microbial control.
• This approach offers a promising advancement for creating robust antibacterial surfaces to combat microbial infections in various applications.