Cellulose–silver nanocomposites: Microwave-assisted synthesis, characterization, their thermal stability, and antimicrobial property

A facile microwave-assisted method was developed to fabricate cellulose–silver nanocomposites by reducing silver nitrate in ethylene glycol (EG). EG acts as a solvent, a reducing reagent, and a microwave absorber in the whole system, thus no additional reductant is needed. The influences of the heating time and heating temperature on the products were investigated. The products were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR), and scanning electron microscope (SEM). The thermal stability of cellulose–silver nanocomposites in nitrogen and air was studied using thermogravimetric analysis (TG) and differential scanning calorimetric analysis (DSC). Also, the cellulose–silver nanocomposites possess a high antimicrobial activity against the model microbes Escherichia coli (Gram-negative) and Staphylococcus aureus (Gram-positive). It is expected that the cellulose–silver nanocomposites are a promising material for the application in the biomedical field.