Preparation of PANI–CuZnO ternary nanocomposite and investigation of its effects on polyurethane coatings antibacterial, antistatic, and mechanical properties

In this study, a facile method for the production of Antibacterial and Antistatic polyurethane coatings was investigated using copper modified ZnO nanoparticles–polyaniline nanofibers (PANI–CuZnO) ternary nanocomposite. PANI–CuZnO ternary nanocomposite was synthesized through two steps. First, copper-modified ZnO nanoparticles were produced through the hydrolysis method using acetate precursors, and then they were mixed with polyaniline nanofibers, which were synthesized by seeding method. The obtained nanocomposite was characterized by FTIR, XRD, and FESEM techniques. Results of evaluating the antibacterial action of the polyurethane coatings with the content of ternary nanocomposite showed that the obtained coatings have a proper antibacterial action against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. In addition, measuring the coatings’ surface electrical resistance revealed that addition of the ternary nanocomposite to the polyurethane coatings’ matrix causes the surface electrical resistance of the coatings significantly decreases and reaches 8 × 107 Ω/sq. Thereby, they could be categorized as an antistatic coating. Moreover, the addition of PANI–CuZnO enhanced adhesion strength and scratch resistance of the final polyurethane coatings.