One-Pot Synthesis of Polyvinyl Alcohol-Piperazine Cross-Linked Polymer for Antibacterial Applications

The spread of microbes which cause infectious diseases are of great concern on human health. Therefore, a water-soluble cross-linked polymer based on polyvinyl alcohol was synthesized via an economical, facile, and aqueous-based approach. The resultant cross-linked polymer was characterized by different techniques such as FTIR, ¹H NMR, ¹³C NMR, TGA, and DSC. The IR spectrum has been recorded in the range 400–4000 cm ⁻¹. From thermal studies, i.e. TGA, cross-linking polymer PVA-E-Pz showed two step degradation and from DSC, glass transition temperature (T _g) was exhibited at 86.05 °C. The antimicrobial properties of the cross-linked polymer were studied using the well-diffusion technique and optical density method against gram-negative bacteria, Escherichia coli and gram-positive bacteria, Staphylococcus aureus. Polymer coated fabric was also evaluated for antimicrobial activity against both the bacteria, even after 25 wash cycles the coated fabric showed about 90% antibacterial activity. Samples showed good antimicrobial activity against both the micro-organisms, but more activity was exhibited against gram-negative bacteria. The coating durability and surface morphology of the coated fabric were also analyzed. Cytotoxicity studies revealed that PVA-E-Pz was non-toxic against human dermal fibroblast cell lines. This material might be a good fit for advanced wound dressing and textile applications. The proposed strategy provides a low-cost, environmentally friendly method for creating a new cross-linked polymer with antimicrobial activity.