Synthesis and characterization of an antimicrobial textile by hexagon silver nanoparticles with a new capping agent via the polyol process

In this study, we developed hexagon silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) prepared by the polyol method in ethylene glycol media using aminopropyltrimethoxysilane (APTMS) as a capping agent for the first time. The presence of the primary amine group makes APTMS a great candidate as a capping agent for the synthesis of silver nanostructures, but it has not been used for this purpose until now. The synthesized silver nanostructures were characterized by transmission electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry and ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy. The molar ratio of APTMS to AgNO3 varied from 0.5 to 6.8, which resulted in an average diameter of the obtained nanoparticles from 50 to 100 nm. The optimum morphology of hexagonally shaped AgNPs was obtained at a molar ratio of 2.2. The prepared AgNPs were evaluated for their antibacterial and antifungal properties. Antimicrobial tests showed that a cotton textile coated with colloidal amino functionalized AgNPs has excellent antimicrobial properties as an inhibitor of growth against the gram-positive bacteria Staphylococcus aureus, gram-negative bacteria, Escherichia coli and fungus Candida albicans, and therefore showing potential for real applications.