This study is focused on polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) porous nanotextile and its modification with thin, silver sputtered nanolayers, combined with a subsequent modification with an excimer laser. The KrF excimer laser was set to single-shot pulse mode. Subsequently, the physico chemical properties, morphology, surface chemistry, and wettability were determined. Minor effects of the excimer laser on the pristine PTFE substrate were described, but significant changes were observed after the application of the excimer laser to the polytetrafluoroethylene with sputtered silver, where the formation of a silver nanoparticles/PTFE/Ag composite was described, with a wettability similar to that of a superhydrophobic surface. Both scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy revealed the formation of superposed globular structures on the polytetrafluoroethylene lamellar primary structure, which was also confirmed using energy dispersive spectroscopy. The combined changes in the surface morphology, chemistry, and thus wettability induced a significant change in the PTFE's antibacterial properties. Samples coated with silver and further treated with the excimer laser 150 mJ/cm2 inhibited 100% of the bacterial strain E. coli. The motivation of this study was to find a material with flexible and elastic properties and a hydrophobic character, with antibacterial properties that could be enhanced with silver nanoparticles, but hydrophobic properties that would be maintained. These properties can be used in different types of applications, mainly in tissue engineering and the medicinal industry, where water-repellent materials may play important roles. This synergy was achieved via the technique we proposed, and even when the Ag nanostructures were prepared, the high hydrophobicity of the system Ag-polytetrafluorethylene was maintained.

Department of Power Engineering The University of Chemistry and Technology Prague 166 28 Prague Czech Republic

Department of Solid State Engineering The University of Chemistry and Technology Prague Technická 3 166 28 Prague Czech Republic

Faculty of Science J E Purkyně University in Ústí nad Labem 400 96 Ústí nad Labem Czech Republic

See more in PubMed

Guo Q., Huang Y., Xu M., Huang Q., Cheng J., Yu S., Zhang Y., Xiao C. PTFE porous membrane technology: A comprehensive review. J. Membr. Sci. 2022;664:121115. doi: 10.1016/j.memsci.2022.121115. DOI

Subbiah T., Bhat G.S., Tock R.W., Parameswaran S., Ramkumar S.S. Electrospinning of nanofibers. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2005;96:557–569. doi: 10.1002/app.21481. DOI

Ramakrishna S., Fujihara K., Teo W.E., Lim T.C., Ma Z. An Introduction to Elektrospinning and Nanofibers. World Scientific; Singapore: 2005.

Unnithan A.R., Arathyram R.S., Kim C.S. Chapter 3—Electrospinning of Polymers for Tissue Engineering. William Andrew Publishing; Norwich, NY, USA: 2015. pp. 45–55. DOI

Yarin A.L., Koombhongse S., Reneker D.H. Bending instability in electrospinning of nanofibers. J. Appl. Phys. 2001;89:3018–3026. doi: 10.1063/1.1333035. DOI

Xu H., Jin W., Wang F., Liu G., Li C., Wang J., Zhu H., Guo Y. Formation and characterization of polytetrafluoroethylene nanofiber membranes for high-efficiency fine particulate filtration. R. Soc. Chem. 2019;9:13631–13645. doi: 10.1039/C9RA01643K. PubMed DOI PMC

Yu S., Huang Q., Cheng J., Huang Y., Xiao C. Pore Structure Optimization of Electrospun PTFE Nanofiber Membrane and Its Application in Membrane Emulsification. Sep. Purif. Technol. 2020;251:117297. doi: 10.1016/j.seppur.2020.117297. DOI

Švorčík V., Hubáček T., Slepička P., Siegel J., Kolská Z., Bláhová O., Macková A., Hnatowicz V. Characterization of carbon nanolayers flash evaporated on PET and PTFE. Carbon. 2009;47:1770–1778. doi: 10.1016/j.carbon.2009.03.001. DOI

Slepička P., Kolská Z., Náhlík J., Hnatowicz V., Švorčík V. Properties of Au nanolayers on polyethyleneterephthalate and polytetrafluoroethylene. Surf. Interface Anal. 2009;41:741–745. doi: 10.1002/sia.3082. DOI

Hurtuková K., Vašinová T., Slepičková Kasálková N., Fajstavr D., Rimpelová S., Pavlíčková V.S., Švorčík V., Slepička P. Antibacterial Properties of Silver Nanoclusters with Carbon Support on Flexible Polymer. Nanomaterials. 2022;12:2658. doi: 10.3390/nano12152658. PubMed DOI PMC

Fajstavrová K., Rimpelová S., Fajstavr D., Švorčík V., Slepička P. Cell Behavior of Primary Fibroblasts and Osteoblasts on Plasma-Treated Fluorinated Polymer Coated with Honeycomb Polystyrene. Materials. 2021;14:889. doi: 10.3390/ma14040889. PubMed DOI PMC

Hurtuková K., Fajstavrová K., Rimpelová S., Vokatá B., Fajstavr D., Kasálková N.S., Siegel J., Švorčík V., Slepička P. Antibacterial Properties of a Honeycomb-like Pattern with Cellulose Acetate and Silver Nanoparticles. Materials. 2021;14:4051. doi: 10.3390/ma14144051. PubMed DOI PMC

Hurtuková K., Juřicová V., Fajstavrová K., Fajstavr D., Slepičková Kasálková N., Rimpelová S., Švorčík V., Slepička P. Cytocompatibility of Polymethyl Methacrylate Honeycomb-like Pattern on Perfluorinated Polymer. Polymers. 2021;13:3663. doi: 10.3390/polym13213663. PubMed DOI PMC

Slepička P., Neznalová K., Fajstavr D., Švorčík V. Nanostructuring of honeycomb-like polystyrene with excimer laser. Prog. Org. Coat. 2020;145:105670. doi: 10.1016/j.porgcoat.2020.105670. DOI

Neznalova K., Sajdl P., Svorcik V., Slepicka P. Cellulose acetate honeycomb-like pattern created by improved phase separation. Express Polym. Lett. 2020;14:1078–1088. doi: 10.3144/expresspolymlett.2020.87. DOI

Neznalová K., Fajstavr D., Rimpelová S., Slepičková Kasálková N., Kolská Z., Švorčík V., Slepička P. Honeycomb-patterned poly(l-lactic) acid on plasma-activated FEP as cell culture scaffold. Polym. Degrad. Stab. 2020;181:109370. doi: 10.1016/j.polymdegradstab.2020.109370. DOI

Zhang S., Liang X., Gadd G.M., Zhao Q. A sol–gel based silver nanoparticle/polytetrafluorethylene (AgNP/PTFE) coating with enhanced antibacterial and anti-corrosive properties. Appl. Surf. Sci. 2021;535:147675. doi: 10.1016/j.apsusc.2020.147675. DOI

Guo L., Yuan W., Lua Z., Li C.M. Polymer/nanosilver composite coatings for antibacterial applications. Colloids Surf. A. 2013;439:69–83. doi: 10.1016/j.colsurfa.2012.12.029. DOI

Spagnol C., Fragal E.H., Pereira A.G.B., Nakamura C.V., Muniz E.C., Follmann H.D.M., Silva R., Rubira A.F. Cellulose nanowhiskers decorated with silver nanoparticles as an additive to antibacterial polymers membranes fabricated by electrospinning. J. Colloid Interface Sci. 2018;531:705–715. doi: 10.1016/j.jcis.2018.07.096. PubMed DOI

Sawada I., Fachrul R., Ito T., Ohmukai Y., Maruyama T., Matsuyama H. Development of a hydrophilic polymer membrane containing silver nanoparticles with both organic antifouling and antibacterial properties. J. Membr. Sci. 2012;387–388:1–6. doi: 10.1016/j.memsci.2011.06.020. DOI

Teper P., Oleszko-Torbus N., Bochenek M., Hajduk B., Kubacki J., Jałowiecki L., Płaza G., Kowalczuk A., Mendrek B. Hybrid nanolayers of star polymers and silver nanoparticles with antibacterial activity. Colloids Surf. B Biointerface. 2022;213:112404. doi: 10.1016/j.colsurfb.2022.112404. PubMed DOI

Maziya K., Dlamini B.C., Malinga S.P. Hyperbranched polymer nanofibrous membrane grafted with silver nanoparticles for dual antifouling and antibacterial properties against Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa . React. Funct. Polym. 2020;148:104494. doi: 10.1016/j.reactfunctpolym.2020.104494. DOI

Luo H., Huang T., Li X., Wang J., Lv T., Tan W., Gao F., Zhang J., Zhou B. Synergistic antibacterial and wound-healing applications of an imidazole-based porous organic polymer encapsulated silver nanoparticles composite. Microporous Mesoporous Mater. 2022;337:111925. doi: 10.1016/j.micromeso.2022.111925. DOI

Rajanandkumar R. Synthesis and characterization of polymer encapsulated silver nanoparticle coatings for antibacterial effect. Mater. Today Proc. 2021;47:1782–1786. doi: 10.1016/j.matpr.2021.02.608. DOI

Monte J.P., Fontes A., Santos B.S., Pereira G.A.L., Pereira G. Recent advances in hydroxyapatite/polymer/silver nanoparticles scaffolds with antimicrobial activity for bone regeneration. Mater. Lett. 2023;338:134027. doi: 10.1016/j.matlet.2023.134027. DOI

Abd El-Kader M.F.H., Elabbasy M.T., Ahmed M.K., Menazea A.A. Structural, morphological features, and antibacterial behavior of PVA/PVP polymeric blends doped with silver nanoparticles via pulsed laser ablation. J. Mater. Res. Technol. 2021;13:291–300. doi: 10.1016/j.jmrt.2021.04.055. DOI

Guo R., Yin G., Sha X., Wei L., Zhao Q. Effect of surface modification on the adhesion enhancement of electrolessly deposited Ag-PTFE antibacterial composite coatings to polymer substrates. Mater. Lett. 2015;143:256–260. doi: 10.1016/j.matlet.2014.12.125. DOI

Gao Z.N., Wang Z., Yue T.N., Weng Y.X., Wang M. Multifunctional cotton non-woven fabrics coated with silver nanoparticles and polymers for antibacterial, superhydrophobic and high performance microwave shielding. J. Colloid Interface Sci. 2021;582:112–123. doi: 10.1016/j.jcis.2020.08.037. PubMed DOI

Zhang X.F., Liu Z.G., Shen W., Gurunathan S. Silver Nanoparticles: Synthesis, Characterization, Properties, Applications, and Therapeutic Approaches. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2016;17:1534. doi: 10.3390/ijms17091534. PubMed DOI PMC

Sun Y., Xia Y. Shape-Controlled Synthesis of Gold and Silver Nanoparticles. Science. 2002;298:2176–2179. doi: 10.1126/science.1077229. PubMed DOI

Kim D., Jeong S., Moon J. Synthesis of silver nanoparticles using the polyol process and the influence of precursor injection. Nanotechnology. 2006;28:4019–4024. doi: 10.1088/0957-4484/17/16/004. PubMed DOI

Chen S.F., Zhang H. Aggregation kinetics of nanosilver in different water conditions. Adv. Nat. Sci. Nanotechnol. 2012;3:035006. doi: 10.1088/2043-6262/3/3/035006. DOI

Tien D.C., Liao C.Y., Huang J.C., Tseng K.H., Lung J.K., Tsung T.T., Kao W.S., Tsai T.H., Cheng T.W., Yu B.S., et al. Novel technique for preparing a nano-silver water suspension by the arc-discharge method. Rev. Adv. Mater. Sci. 2008;18:750–756.

Nguyen Q.H., Tran Q.G., Le A.-H. Silver nanoparticles: Synthesis, properties, toxicology, applications and perspectives. Adv. Nat. Sci. Nanosci. Nanotechnol. 2013;4:033001

Wender H., Migowski P., Feil A.F., Teixeira S.R., Dupont J. Sputtering deposition of nanoparticles onto liquid substrates: Recent advances and future trends. Coord. Chem. Rev. 2013;257:2468–2483. doi: 10.1016/j.ccr.2013.01.013. DOI

Lee D.K., Kang Y.S. Synthesis of Silver Nanocrystallites by a New Thermal Decomposition Method and Their Characterization. ETRI J. 2004;26:252–256. doi: 10.4218/etrij.04.0103.0061. DOI

Siegel J., Kvítek O., Kolská Z., Slepička P., Švorčík V. Gold Nanostructures Prepared on Solid Surface. InTech Publ.; Rijeka, Croatia: 2012. pp. 43–70.

Sakamoto M., Fujistuka M., Majima T. Light as a construction tool of metal nanoparticles: Synthesis and mechanism. J. Photochem. Photobiol. 2009;10:33–56. doi: 10.1016/j.jphotochemrev.2008.11.002. DOI

Huang L., Zhai M.L., Long D.W., Peng J., Xu L., Wu G.Z., Li J.Q.J. UV-induced synthesis, characterization and formation mechanism of silver nanoparticles in alkalic carboxymethylated chitosan solution. Nanopart. Res. 2008;10:1193–1202. doi: 10.1007/s11051-007-9353-0. DOI

Sintubin L., Verstraete W., Boon N. Biologically produced nanosilver: Current state and future perspectives. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2012;109:2422–2436. doi: 10.1002/bit.24570. PubMed DOI

Suresh A.K., Pelletier D.A., Wang W., Moon J.W., Gu B., Mortensen N.P., Allison D.P., Joy D.C., Phelps T.J., Doktycz M.J. Silver nanocrystallites: Biofabrication using Shewanella oneidensis, and an evaluation of their comparative toxicity on gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria. Environ. Sci. Technol. 2010;44:5210–5215. doi: 10.1021/es903684r. PubMed DOI

Fayaz A.M., Balaji K., Girilal M., Yadav R., Kalaichelvan P.T., Venketesan R. Biogenic synthesis of silver nanoparticles and their synergistic effect with antibiotics: A study against gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria. Nanomed. Nanotechnol. 2010;6:100–103. doi: 10.1016/j.nano.2009.04.006. PubMed DOI

Ahmed A., Usman M., Ji Z., Rafiq M., Yu B., Shen Y., Cong H. Nature-inspired biogenic synthesis of silver nanoparticles for antibacterial applications. Mater. Today Chem. 2023;27:101339. doi: 10.1016/j.mtchem.2022.101339. DOI

Midha K., Singh G., Nagpal M., Arora S. Potential Application of Silver Nanoparticles in Medicine. Nanosci. Nanotechnol.-Asia. 2016;6:82–91. doi: 10.2174/2210681205666150818230319. DOI

Chan M., Hidalgo G., Asadishad B., Almeida S., Muja N., Mohammadi M.S., Nazhat S.N., Tufenkji N. Inhibition of bacterial motility and spreading via release of cranberry derived materials from silicone substrates. Colloid Surf. B. 2013;110:275–280. doi: 10.1016/j.colsurfb.2013.03.047. PubMed DOI

Marmur A., Volpe C.D., Siboni S., Amirfazli A., Drelich J.W. Contact angles and wettability: Towards common and accurate terminology. Surf. Innov. 2017;5:3–8. doi: 10.1680/jsuin.17.00002. DOI

Bormashenko E., Bormashenko Y., Whyman G., Pogreb R., Musin A., Jager R., Barkay Z. Contact Angle Hysteresis on Polymer Substrates Established with Various Experimental Techniques, Its Interpretation, and Quantitative Characterization. Langmuir. 2008;24:4020–4025. doi: 10.1021/la703875b. PubMed DOI

Antibacterial properties of bimetallic nanopattern induced by excimer laser on PTFE nanotextile