Synthesis and Characterization of Bamboo Charcoal-silver Composites with High Antibacterial Efficacy

Bamboo charcoal supporting Silver (BC-Ag) Composites were prepared from Dendrocalamus strictus, a tropical genus of giant clumping bamboo. Pyrolysis of bamboo was carried out in the presence of N2 followed by activation using sodium alginate and chemical reduction of silver nitrate using hydrated hydrazine. The BC-Ag composites were characterized by silver particle size distribution using X-ray diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) techniques. SEM showed that the fine nanosized silver particles mostly in the range of <110 nm were homogeneously distributed on its surface. Further characterization was done on the basis of Silver ion (Ag+) release. Antibacterial properties of BC-Ag composites were found to exhibit a high zone of inhibition ranging from 11.1 mm - 20.3 mm against various human pathogens.