Multifunctional cotton non-woven fabrics coated with silver nanoparticles and polymers for antibacterial, superhydrophobic and high performance microwave shielding

Multifunctional cotton fabrics have attracted significant attention as next-generation wearable materials. Herein, we report a facile method for the fabrication of flexible and wearable cotton fabrics with ultra-high electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding, antibacterial, and superhydrophobic properties. Cotton fabrics were first coated chemically with silver nanoparticles using polydopamine as adhesive and then with hydrophobic polydimethylsiloxane or polyimide. The introduction of polydopamine significantly increased the bond between silver nanoparticles and cotton fibers, thereby preventing silver nanoparticles from falling off the surface. The composite fabrics exhibited a high conductivity of similar to 1000 S/cm, and their EMI shielding effectiveness increased up to similar to 110 dB. The composite fabrics exhibited excellent self-cleaning performance and acid-alkali corrosion resistance because of their superhydrophobicity. Notably, the fabric composites showed a significant antibacterial action against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli. (C) 2020 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

This study presents a simple method for fabricating flexible and wearable cotton fabrics with ultra-high EMI shielding, antibacterial, and superhydrophobic properties, achieved by coating silver nanoparticles and polydopamine on the surface, followed by hydrophobic polymers. The composite fabrics showed high conductivity, increased EMI shielding effectiveness, excellent self-cleaning performance, acid-alkali corrosion resistance, and significant antibacterial action against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli.