Antimicrobial materials are widely used for inhibition of microorganisms in the environment. It has been established that bacterial growth can be restrained by silver nanoparticles. Combining these with other antimicrobial agents, such as ZnO, may increase the antimicrobial activity and the use of carrier substrate makes the material easier to handle. In the paper, we present an antimicrobial nanocomposite based on silver nanoparticles nucleated in general silicate nanostructure ZnO·mSiO2. First, we prepared the silicate fine net nanostructure ZnO·mSiO2 with zinc content up to 30 wt% by precipitation of sodium water glass in zinc acetate solution. Silver nanoparticles were then formed within the material by photoreduction of AgNO3 on photoactive ZnO. This resulted into an Ag-ZnO·mSiO2 composite with silica gel-like morphology and the specific surface area of 250 m2/g. The composite, alongside with pure AgNO3 and clear ZnO·mSiO2, were successfully tested for antimicrobial activity on both gram-positive and gram-negative bacterial strains and yeast Candida albicans. With respect to the silver content, the minimal inhibition concentration of Ag-ZnO·mSiO2 was worse than AgNO3 only for gram-negative strains. Moreover, we found a positive synergistic antimicrobial effect between Ag and Zn agents. These properties create an efficient and easily applicable antimicrobial material in the form of powder.

Department of Biology and Ecology Faculty of Science University of Ostrava Dvořákova 7 701 03 Ostrava Czech Republic

Institute of Geological Engineering VSB Technical University of Ostrava 17 listopadu 15 2172 708 33 Ostrava Czech Republic

Institute of Geonics of the Czech Academy of Science Department of Material Disintegration Studentská 1768 708 00 Ostrava Czech Republic

IT4Innovations National Supercomputing Center VSB Technical University of Ostrava 17 listopadu 15 2172 708 33 Ostrava Czech Republic

Nanotechnology Centre VSB Technical University of Ostrava 17 listopadu 15 2172 708 33 Ostrava Czech Republic

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