Toward Scaling up the Production of Metal Oxide Nanoparticles for Application on Washable Antimicrobial Cotton Fabrics

Noha Khalil Mahdy; Mousa El-Sayed; Saif El-Din Al-Mofty; Abdalla Mohamed; Ali H Karaly; Mehrez E El-Naggar; Hassan Nageh; Wessam A Sarhan; Hassan Mohamed El-Said Azzazy

doi:10.1021/acsomega.2c04692

Toward Scaling up the Production of Metal Oxide Nanoparticles for Application on Washable Antimicrobial Cotton Fabrics

ACS Omega. 2022 Oct 17;7(43):38942-38956. doi: 10.1021/acsomega.2c04692. eCollection 2022 Nov 1.

Authors

Noha Khalil Mahdy¹, Mousa El-Sayed¹, Saif El-Din Al-Mofty¹, Abdalla Mohamed¹, Ali H Karaly¹, Mehrez E El-Naggar², Hassan Nageh³, Wessam A Sarhan¹, Hassan Mohamed El-Said Azzazy¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Chemistry, School of Sciences & Engineering, The American University in Cairo, AUC Avenue, New Cairo11835, Egypt.
² Institute of Textile Research and Technology, National Research Centre, El behouth Street, Dokki, Giza12622, Egypt.
³ Nanotechnology Research Center (NTRC), The British University in Egypt, El-Shorouk City, Suez Desert Road, P.O. Box 43, Cairo11837, Egypt.

Abstract

To examine the utilization of metal oxide nanoparticles (NPs) in different commercial products, this work focuses on the determination of cost-effective and scalable synthesis protocols. The solvothermal protocol is well-known as a scalable method but has recently been shown to lack economic feasibility. The mechanochemical method has recently been recognized to be a more economic and environmentally friendly substitute for the solvothermal method. In this study, zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) and copper oxide nanoparticles (CuO NPs) were synthesized using two (aqueous and organic) solvothermal (wet) methods and two (manual and automated) mechanochemical (dry) methods. The four methods were evaluated and compared. The automated mechanochemical method generated a significantly higher yield of ZnO NPs (82%) and CuO NPs (84%) using the least energy and time. However, the prepared ZnO NPs displayed higher cytotoxicity against Vero E6 cells when compared to that of CuO NPs. Because of their low cytotoxicity, CuO NPs synthesized via the automated mechanochemical method were selected for application onto cotton fabrics. Lower cytotoxicity was observed for CuO NPs treated fabrics with an IC₅₀ of 562 mg/mL and ZnO treated fabrics with an IC₅₀ at 23.93 mg/mL when the treated fabrics were tested against L929 fibroblast cells. Additionally, the cotton fabrics retained bactericidal and virucidal effects after four washes. Thus, the current study recommends the automated mechanochemical method as a cost-effective scalable approach for the synthesis of CuO NPs. The application of CuO NPs onto cotton fabrics generated washable antimicrobial face masks.