Facile, single-pot preparation of nanoporous SiO2 particles (carrier) with AgNPs at core and crust for controlled disinfectant release

Abstract

This study demonstrates a novel, facile and one-pot approach to synthesize silica nanoparticles with silver at core and crust (SiNP-AgCC). A modified Stober method was used to make SiNP-AgCC. A significant reduction in the size of SiO(2 )nanoparticles was seen, with 2-5 nm AgNPs being uniformly distributed on the surface and 10-20 nm AgNPs in the center. A typical mesoporous SiO2 particle (SiNP) produced using the Stober method was transformed to nanoporous SiO2 by this modified Stober method. Nanoporous SiO2 particles with silver in the center are advantageous for slow and consistent Ag+ release, which was confirmed by Ag+ ion release test. Antibacterial activities of the samples were tested to evaluate the disinfection performance of the samples on gram-negative bacteria (Escherichia coli) using disk diffusion and the LB-agar method. SiNP-AgCC showed prolonged silver release for more than 20 days and improved antibacterial properties even after five days of incubation. (C) 2019 King Saud University. Production and hosting by Elsevier B.V.