Exfoliation and Decoration of Graphene Sheets with Silver Nanoparticles and Their Antibacterial Properties (original) (raw)

This study presents a simple and environmentally friendly method for exfoliating graphene sheets (GRP) from graphite and decorating them with silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) using ultrasonication in the presence of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA). The resulting GRP-AgNP-PVA composites exhibited significant antibacterial activity when applied to cotton-polyester blend textile fabrics, with optimum ratios of AgNPs leading to inhibition zones of up to 12 mm, compared to only 1.75 mm for AgNPs used alone. This method not only enhances the stability of AgNPs but also demonstrates the potential of these composites as effective antibacterial agents for textiles.