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Antibacterial drugs or antibiotics, abused in medical and agricultural fields, have caused the excess production of antibiotics in the environment.
The aim of this study is to effectively enhance the antibacterial activity of Sb2O3via inhibiting the electron-hole pairs recombination through coupling the Cu2O to solve the significant health care challenge caused by antibiotic-resistant bacteria.
The Cu2O/Sb2O3 nanocomposite was successfully synthesized via a facile hydrothermal method. The structure, composition, and surface morphology of the as-synthesized nanocomposite were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and High resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM). The antibacterial performance of Cu2O/Sb2O3 nanocomposite was studied by the colony count method.
It was found that the Cu-O-Sb bonds were formed on the surface of Cu2O/Sb2O3 after the Cu2O coupling, which was supported by XPS results. Compared with pure Sb2O3, the Cu2O/Sb2O3 nanocomposite presented significantly enhanced antibacterial activity, and its antibacterial rate is greater than 99.9% against both Escherichia Coli and Staphylococcus aureus. This can be attributed to the fact that the electrons (e-) generated in the conduction band (CB) of Cu2O transferred into the CB of Sb2O3, which could promote the carrier separation efficiently. The possible antibacterial mechanism of Cu2O/Sb2O3 nanocomposite was put forward.
The Cu2O/Sb2O3 nanocomposite exhibited excellent antibacterial properties, which presented the antibacterial rates of >99.9%, and might be a prospective candidate for potential applications in plastics, paint, and textile industries.
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