Enhanced properties of silk fabric through immobilization of gold and titanium dioxide nanoparticles

Abstract Enhanced functions of silk fabric were achieved by complex coating with both gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) and titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiO2NPs). AuNPs were coated onto the silk fabric via in-situ synthesis, which was followed by loading TiO2NPs with assistance of polyethyleneimine (PEI). AuNPs endow vivid color on silk fabric because of its localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR), which maintained after the further assembly of TiO2NPs. The surface morphology and chemical structure of the functionalized silk fabrics were characterized in detail. The AuNP colored silk fabrics with TiO2NPs exhibited better light color fastness than the traditional dye colored silk with TiO2NPs. Synergistic effect between AuNPs and TiO2NPs endowed silk fabric with enhanced antibacterial property against Escherichia coli (E. coli). More importantly, AuNPs greatly improved the photocatalytic activity of TiO2NPs on silk fabric for decomposing contaminates. The assembly of functional nanoparticles on fibrous materials provides a potentially facile and effective strategy to achieve versatile fabrics in textile industry.