The controlled synthesis of porous silver structure on carbon fibres and their sterilization performance

Ag@C fibres with porous silver structure were synthesized with a surface-hydrolyzed polyacrylonitrile (PAN) fibre as a template and by a hydrazine hydrate reduction and carbonization process. The composition and structure of the Ag@C fibres were characterized with a scanning electron microscope, an X-ray diffractometer, a Fourier transform infrared spectrometer, an X-ray photoelectron spectrometer, a Raman spectrometer, and a thermogravimetric analyser. The porous structure of the silver shell combined with carbon was conducive to the release of silver ions and suppressed the loss of silver nanoparticles from the surface of the carbon fibres. The Ag@C fibres showed excellent antibacterial performance. When the dosage of Ag@C fibres prepared with a silver nitrate solution of 0.5 mol/L was 1 mg, 2 mg, 4 mg and 8 mg, the bacterial inactivation rate to Staphylococcus aureus was 97.98%, 99.89%, 99.99%, and 99.99% in 12 h, respectively. The loss of viability only decreased to 80% when 1 mg of Ag@C fibres were used for antimicrobial activity test after five times of recycling. The Ag@C fibres have a broad application prospect in producing fabric products of antibacterial fields. Graphical abstract