Preparation and Characterization of Antibacterial Ag₂O-Coated HDPE Films Obtained by Vacuum Evaporation Technique

Abstract

To obtain the antibacterial plastics films, the Ag₂O-coated HDPE films were prepared through vacuum evaporation technique via depositing Ag₂O on the substrate of high density polyethylene (HDPE) films pretreated by ion bombardment. The pretreatment made the surface polarity and roughness of the substrates improved. The coating was continuous and dense, being of about 17.2 nm thick, and the content of silver ions in it was 7.0020 µg/cm². The Ag₂O-coated HDPE films exhibited strong antibacterial activity for both gram-negative bacteria (E. coli) and gram-positive bacteria (S. aureus). However, the mechanical properties of the composite films slightly dropped in contrast with the HDPE films.

Keywords:

• Ag₂O
• Antibacterial activity
• Coating
• High density polyethylene
• Vacuum evaporation