Preparation of Silver Nanoparticle Dispersions via a Dendritic-Polymer Template Approach and their Use for Antibacterial Surface Treatment

An easy and robust approach for the production of long-term-stable silver nanoparticle dispersions with narrow size distribution (mean diameter approximate to 3-5 nm) has been developed. Amphiphilic-modified hyperbranched polyethyleneimines with core/shell architecture were used as macromolecular templates and carriers. We systematically investigated the antibacterial performance and morphology of thin silver-loaded hyperbranched polymer coatings on poly(ethylene terephthalate) prepared by different wet coating techniques. Furthermore, the influence of the density of the hydrophobic shell, varied by the degree of amidation between 50 and 70%, was studied with respect to the silver release behavior, wetting properties and antibacterial activity of the silver/hbp hybrid surface coatings.