Synthesis, Characterization and Evaluation of the Antibiofouling Potential of Some Metal and Metal Oxide Nanoparticles

• Main Authors: Lucía Blanco-Covián, José Ramón Campello-García, María Carmen Blanco-López, Manuel Miranda-Martínez
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2020-08-01
• Series: Applied Sciences
• Subjects: metal and metal oxide nanoparticles; Ag-TiO₂NPs; antibiofouling; poly (vinyl alcohol) (PVA), glutaraldehyde (GA), microalgae
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/10/17/5864

This study explores the potential antibiofouling capacity of coatings based on mixes of poly vinyl alcohol (PVA)-glutaraldehyde (GA) incorporating additions of metal and metal oxide nanoparticles (TiO₂, ZnO, CuO, AgNPs and Ag-TiO₂NPs). Such a kind of hybrid polymer-nanoparticle mix (PVA/GA/ nanoparticles (NPs)) was uniformly applied by spin coating on the surface of a laboratory raceway and tested in freshwater loaded with green algae communities. The results showed PVA/GA was a convenient carrier for the nanoparticles tested. Image analysis of the coatings showed that Ag-TiO₂ nanoparticles exhibited a significant improvement of the antibiofouling effect when compared with that of AgNPs and TiO₂-NPs. The effect of the Ag-TiO₂ NPs loaded coating about four times better than that of ZnO-NPs. A consistent experimental methodology was developed to test the antibiofouling capacity of the coatings and the hybrid coatings developed have demonstrated promising results as environmentally friendly antibiofouling materials.