Synthesis and optical properties of copper-containing nanoparticles for antibacterial coatings

The paper presents a simple and cost-effective method for copper nanoparticles synthesis by the reduction of copper sulfate with tert- butylamine borane in the presence of polyvinylpyrrolidone as a stabilizer. The optical properties and stability of the obtained colloidal systems were investigated using electron spectroscopy. It was found that the synthesized nanoparticles exhibit a polydisperse size distribution with two dominant fractions: small spherical particles (less than 10 nm) showing an absorption peak at 360 nm, and larger particles (20–50 nm) with a plasmon resonance at 575 nm. The system demonstrated good stability for 45 minutes, after which partial aggregation and sedimentation of predominantly larger particles were observed. The potential applications of the synthesized copper nanoparticles as an antimicrobial component in functional coatings for transportation, agriculture, and the food industry are discussed. The potential synergistic effect of the polydisperse system is noted, where small particles provide rapid bactericidal action, and large particles provide a prolonged antimicrobial effect. For practical application, further investigation of the antibacterial activity and stability of the nanoparticles within the target materials is recommended.