UV powder coatings containing synthetic Ag-beidellite for antibacterial properties

• Preparation of antibacterial UV powder coatings.
• Incorporation of beidellite type clay modified with silver
• Formation of silver nanoparticles
• No nanoparticle agglomeration ensured by the beidellite structure
• Building of nanocomposites with high properties

The preparation of antibacterial UV powder coatings dedicated to wood based panels is described in the present study. Two experimental methods were investigated: the generation of silver nanoparticles during the polymerization of UV powders and the introduction of a silver modified beidellite within UV powder formulations. While the first method leads to some nanoparticle aggregation, this phenomenon was avoided with the second approach. Antibacterial activity was thus ensured by the presence of beidellite modified with silver cations. XRD, X-ray fluorescence, SEM/EDX and TEM analyses allowed a complete characterization of the Ag-beidellite before its incorporation within UV powder formulations. Real-time-FTIR spectroscopy fitted with an environmental cell was used to monitor the reactivity of UV powder formulations under UV light and temperature control. Resulting coatings were finally characterized by UV spectroscopy, DMA in tension mode, XRD, TEM and antimicrobial analyses. It was shown that the fully cured and homogeneous coatings exhibit high thermomechanical properties and antibacterial activity.