Novel, Self-Assembled Antimicrobial Textile Coating Containing Chitosan Nanoparticles.

Layer-by-layer (L-b-L) self-assembly is a unique technique for composite ilm fabrication and coating deposition with nanometer level precision. Chitosan nanoparticles were synthesized by ionic gelation with sodium tripolyphosphate (TPP) to enhance chitosan's inherent antibacterial activity. Synthesized nanoparticles were coated on cotton fabric to form a nanocoating using the L-b-L process to impart antimicrobial activity. In this study, PSS, poly (sodium-4-styrene sulfonate), was used as the anionic polyelectrolyte and chitosan nanoparticles were used as the cationic agent. SEM shows the chitosan nanoparticle deposition on the L-b-L nanocoated fabric surface. Results showed the enhanced antibacterial activity of chitosan nanoparticle-coated fabrics as compared to bulk chitosan-coated fabrics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]