Application of Metal Nanoparticles for Production of Self-Sterilizing Coatings

Abstract

Metal nanoparticles (NPs) are increasingly being used in many areas, e.g., industry, pharmacy, and biomedical engineering. NPs can be obtained through chemical and biological synthesis or using physical methods. AgNPs, AuNPs, CuNPs, FeNPs, MgNPs, SnO2NPs, TiO2NPs, and ZnONPs are the most commonly synthesized metal nanoparticles. Many of them have anti-microbial properties and documented activity supported by many tests against some species of pathogenic bacteria, viruses, and fungi. AgNPs, which are used for the production of commercial self-sterilizing packages, are one of the best-explored nanoparticles. Moreover, the EFSA has approved the use of small doses of silver nanoparticles (0.05 mg Ag·kg−1) to food products. Recent studies have shown that metal NPs can be used for the production of coatings to prevent the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which has caused the global pandemic. Some nanoparticles (e.g., ZnONPs and MgONPs) have the Generally Recognized As Safe (GRAS) status, i.e., they are considered safe for consumption and can be used for the production of edible coatings, protecting food against spoilage. Promising results have been obtained in research on the use of more than one type of nanometals, which prevents the development of pathogen resistance through various mechanisms of inactivation thereof.

Application of Iron Nanoparticle-Based Materials in the Food Industry

“…Many methods are known for the chemical synthesis of iron nanoparticles. Methods such as the co-precipitation of an aqueous solution of iron (Fe 2+ ) and iron (Fe 3+ ) salts by addition of a weak base (for example, sodium hydroxide, ammonia, TMAOH), microemulsion techniques, hydrothermal synthesis, sonochemical methods, non-aqueous methods, the thermal decomposition of an organic iron precursor, sol–gel techniques, γ-ray synthesis, microwave plasma synthesis and the thermal decomposition of an alkaline Fe 3+ chelate solution in the presence of a high-boiling-point solvent have been described in the literature [ 7 , 8 ] ( Table 1 ).…”

“…At higher temperatures, nucleation is faster than crystallization, so smaller nanoparticles are formed under these conditions [ 7 ]. The use of hydrophilic polyhydroxy alcohols as solvents facilitates the subsequent dispersion of nanoparticles in water [ 8 ]. Homogeneous iron nanoparticles of small size with high purity can be obtained by this method.…”

Nano-antivirals: A comprehensive review

“…Metallic nanoparticles are deposited directly by adsorption, spray, or dip-coating or using linkers and by sonochemical or magnetron sputtering methods (Góral and Góral-Kowalczyk, 2022;Meister et al, 2022). Zinc citrate was coated on muslin cloth, which showed 99.7% virucidal activity for H3N2 (Nonomura, 2007).…”

“…An analysis comprising twenty-two studies reveals that coronaviruses such as severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS), or human coronavirus (HcoV) can persist up to 9 days on glass, plastics, or metals (Goharshadi et al, 2022). Moreover, 229E, a human coronavirus, will remain infectious in the human lungs' cell culture model for at least 5 days and persist on the range of some common non-biocidal surfaces, including polyvinyl chloride (PVC), PTFE, polytetrafluoroethylene (Teflon), glass, ceramic tiles, stainless steel, and silicon rubber (Góral and Góral-Kowalczyk, 2022). These contaminated surfaces can be effectively inactivated by surface disinfection procedures with 0.1% sodium hypochlorite, 62%-71% ethanol, or 0.5% hydrogen peroxide in 1 min or using 0.02% chlorhexidine digluconate or 0.05%-0.2% benzalkonium chloride, among others.…”

“…Viral transmission has many modes, and many studies (even pre-SARS-CoV-2-pandemic) support the role of surfaces in cross-contamination and the spread of viruses. The field of antiviral surface coatings is evolving rapidly, witnessing a large increase in 2021 (Góral and Góral-Kowalczyk, 2022). By considering the emergence of pandemics and the role of virucidal materials, this review summarizes reports on new groups of viral compounds, nanoparticles, compositions, or surface coatings that can be effectively transformed into self-cleaning products.…”