Antimicrobial Textile Additives - Isis Project No 70511

Technology Source: Inova UNICAMP Innovation Agency

Stable antimicrobial additives for high performance textile applications.

Marketing Opportunity

Antimicrobial textiles are recommended for use in hospital textiles, work clothes, home and sport textiles and mattresses. Some examples of antimicrobial additives include metal and metal salts; quaternary ammonium salts; N-halamines and others like organic molecules and natural substances.

The limitations of currently available additives are that firstly they can be unstable during repeated washing cycles and secondly create effluents during manufacture and subsequent use that are harmful to the environment.

With the advent of bionanotechnology, a new area has developed in textile finishing. Enhancement of textile materials by nanotechnology is expected to become a trillion dollar industry in the next decade, with tremendous technological, economic and ecologic benefits (The Indian Textile Journal, 2008).

The Unicamp Invention

This invention relates to a method of preparing silver nanoparticles for the impregnation and sterilization of fabrics. The nanoparticles are made using a fungus and are then applied to textiles using conventional coating techniques. A method has also been developed by processing of the manufacturing effluent into non-toxic waste.

The textile products of application of this invention can be washed repeatedly without generating effluent or significant loss of the silver nanoparticles. The resulting textiles show broad spectrum antibacterial activity in laboratory trials.

Patent Status

This work is the subject of worldwide patent applications. Inova UNICAMP Innovation Agency would like to talk to companies interested in developing this commercial opportunity. Isis Innovation is working with Inova UNICAMP Innovation Agency to identify potential partners/licensees.

Request Further Information: Project Number 70511 - Antimicrobial textile additives