Unique antimicrobial/thermally conductive polymer composites for use in medical electronic devices

The common neglect of the prominent bacterial growth and accumulation on polymer-based thermal conductive materials used in medical electronic devices will hurt the functionality and lifetime of medical devices, and sometimes even lead to medical accidents. In this study, we developed a novel ternary composite with excellent antimicrobial and thermal conductive properties to solve this problem. This composite was composed of antimicrobial functionalized hexagonal boron nitride (AB@h-BN) nanoplatelets, low melt alloys (LMAs), and epoxy. Antimicrobial testing showed that the AB@h-BN/LMAs/epoxy composites were 100% against both Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus; their antibacterial mechanism was contact killing and was harmless to the environment. Besides enhancing the antimicrobial property, the AB@h-BN nanoplatelets connected the mutually independent LMAs, forming the continuous network for heat conduction in the epoxy. Benefited from this distinctive structure, the thermal conductivity of AB@h-BN/LMAs/epoxy can reach 2.66 Wm(-1) k(-1), which represented an enhancement of about 1141% over the pure epoxy.

Automated summary

A novel ternary composite with excellent antimicrobial and thermal conductive properties was developed to address the common neglect of bacterial growth and accumulation on polymer-based thermal conductive materials used in medical electronic devices. The composite showed 100% antibacterial effectiveness against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus, with a thermal conductivity enhancement of about 1141% over pure epoxy. This composite not only enhances antimicrobial properties, but also forms a continuous network for heat conduction in the epoxy.