Chemical assembly of silver nanoparticles on stainless steel for antimicrobial applications

Microbial adhesion on stainless steel is the most common contamination in many applications. In this work, we present a simple method to fabricate stainless steel-based antimicrobial composites by fixing silver nanoparticles onto the surface. Silver nanoparticles were covalently assembled on the surface of stainless steel by using 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES) as the coupling agent. After 24 h immersion the release of silver ions amounts to a total of 0.07 ppm, as measured by atomic absorption spectrophotometry. The bactericidal rate of the composite on Escherichia coli (E. coli) is greater than 99%, and the inhibition zone is about 28 mm in diameter. Combining the low cost and high effectiveness in inhibiting the growth of bacteria, such composites are expected to be useful as antimicrobial materials that may have great potential antimicrobial applications.