Research Project

Surface modification of cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) and its application in antimicrobial field.

Infections by pathogenic microorganisms are of great concern in many fields, particularly in medical devices, drugs, hospital surfaces/furniture, dental restoration and surgery equipment, health care products and hygienic applications, water purification systems, textiles, food packaging and storage, major or domestic appliances, aeronautic, etc. Infectious diseases kill worldwide more people than any other single cause.

The use of potent and/or specific antimicrobial systems will help to mitigate, combat and/or eradicate these infections, which means an improvement in the state of well-being. In this sense, polymers due to their intrinsic properties are extensively and efficiently employed in all of these fields.

Due to the advantages over inorganic nano- particles, which have been reported in many papers, mainly consisting of availability, biocompatibility, biodegradability, comparatively easy processability, nano-scale effects, low cost, high specific strength and modulus and relatively reactive surface, the natural cellulose nanocrystals have been taken into fully considerations to show widely applications in bio-fields.

Therefore, the use of modified CNCs with antimicrobial properties gains an increasing interest from both academic and industrial point of view.