Preparation of effective carvacrol/attapulgite hybrid antibacterial materials by mechanical milling.

A green antibacterial material was successfully prepared using natural attapulgite and carvacrol by a facile mechanical milling. The stable hybrid nanocomposites were formed after the zeolitic water molecules of attapulgite was substituted by the carvacrol molecules under the effect of mechanical force. It was found that the 30 wt% of carvacrol added amount and the 30 min of grinding time were the appropriate parameters for preparation a stable hybrid. Furthermore, the fast release behavior of carvacrol molecules provided good antibacterial property for the obtained antibacterial material, and the minimum inhibitory concentration values against both Staphylococci aureus and Escherichia coli were 2.0 mg/mL. Therefore, it is expected to develop a facile and promising strategy for preparation green antibacterial material to replace the synthetic antibiotic used in animal feeding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]