Free-Standing Films from Aqueous Dispersions of Lysozyme, Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes, and Polyvinyl Alcohol

A Gloria Nyankima; Daniel W Horn; Virginia A Davis

doi:10.1021/mz400395j

Free-Standing Films from Aqueous Dispersions of Lysozyme, Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes, and Polyvinyl Alcohol

ACS Macro Lett. 2014 Jan 21;3(1):77-79. doi: 10.1021/mz400395j. Epub 2013 Dec 30.

Authors

A Gloria Nyankima¹, Daniel W Horn¹, Virginia A Davis¹

Affiliation

¹ Department of Chemical Engineering, Auburn University, 212 Ross Hall, Auburn, Alabama 36849, United States.

PMID: 35651113
DOI: 10.1021/mz400395j

Abstract

Transparent antibacterial films were produced by casting concentrated dispersions of lysozyme (LSZ), single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs), and polyvinyl alcohol (PVA). The initial SWNT dispersion state had a significant influence on the films' mechanical properties. Films containing 9 wt % bundled SWNTs had six times higher Young's modulus than control films produced without SWNTs. Removal of SWNT bundles by centrifugation prior to concentrating the dispersions resulted in films that contained only 4.5 wt % SWNT but had over eight times higher Young's modulus than the control films.