Antibacterial Activities of Copper, Silver and Carbon Nanoparticles in Sock Fabric

Advances in padding fabrics with nanoparticles to inhibit bacterial growth have led to recent development and marketing of copper, silver, and carbon antibacterial clothing for consumers. We examined the inhibitory effects of swatches of copper, silver and carbon impregnated socks on cultures of gram-negative Escherichia coli and gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus epidermidis in liquid broth and on agar plates. Previous experiments in this lab have shown that carbon swatches produced no inhibition, copper and silver swatches demonstrated marked inhibition, depending on fabric mass. E. coli exhibited more inhibition than S. aureus with silver and copper. Concentration of copper, silver and carbon ions resulting from aqueous interaction with nanoparticles was quantified using ICP-MS through repeated rinses using a shaker bath, and bacterial counts were assessed through plate-counting and spectrophotometry. Further investigations will explore anti fungicidal efficacy of both copper and silver nanoparticle impregnated fabric.