Investigation of water vapour permeation and antibacterial properties of nano silver loaded cellulose acetate film

The study describes water vapour permeation and antibacterial properties of silver nanoparticles(SN) loaded cellulose acetate films. The water vapour permeability of plain cellulose acetate film was found to increase with temperature and activation energy for permeation (Ep) was found to be 46.28 kJ mol-1. In addition, increase in relative humidity also enhanced the permeability parameters of the plain cellulose acetate film. Similarly, use of poly ethyleneglycol (PEG) as plasticizer enhanced the water vapour transmission properties of films but it also produces adverse effect on mechanical properties of the films. The silver nanoparticles loaded films have been characterized by surface plasma resonance (SPR), X-ray diffraction, transmission scanning electron microscopy (TEM) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The average size of the silver nanoparticles, as determined using Scherre’s equation, was found to be nearly 84nm. The film showed fair antibacterial activities against model bacteria E. coli. The moisture barrier action of cellulose acetate film was also tested, using grapes pulp as model substract. The grape pulp when entrapped within the cellulose acetate film, exhibited a slower moisture loss as compared to the pulp exposed to open air.