Antimicrobial TiO2 nanocomposite coatings for surfaces, dental and orthopaedic implants

Vignesh Kumaravel; Keerthi M Nair; Snehamol Mathew; John Bartlett; James E Kennedy; Hugh G Manning; Barry J Whelan; Nigel S Leyland; Suresh C Pillai

doi:10.1016/j.cej.2021.129071

Antimicrobial TiO₂ nanocomposite coatings for surfaces, dental and orthopaedic implants

Chem Eng J. 2021 Jul 15:416:129071. doi: 10.1016/j.cej.2021.129071. Epub 2021 Feb 23.

Authors

Vignesh Kumaravel^{1

2}, Keerthi M Nair^{1

2}, Snehamol Mathew^{1

2}, John Bartlett^{1

2}, James E Kennedy³, Hugh G Manning³, Barry J Whelan³, Nigel S Leyland³, Suresh C Pillai^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ Nanotechnology and Bio-Engineering Research Group, Department of Environmental Science, School of Science, Institute of Technology Sligo, Ash Lane, Sligo, Ireland.
² Centre for Precision Engineering, Materials and Manufacturing Research (PEM), Institute of Technology Sligo, Ash Lane, Sligo, Ireland.
³ Kastus Technologies, Cookstown, Dublin, Ireland.

Abstract

Engineering of self-disinfecting surfaces to constrain the spread of SARS-CoV-2 is a challenging task for the scientific community because the human coronavirus spreads through respiratory droplets. Titania (TiO₂) nanocomposite antimicrobial coatings is one of the ideal remedies to disinfect pathogens (virus, bacteria, fungi) from common surfaces under light illumination. The photocatalytic disinfection efficiency of recent TiO₂ nanocomposite antimicrobial coatings for surfaces, dental and orthopaedic implants are emphasized in this review. Mostly, inorganic metals (e.g. copper (Cu), silver (Ag), manganese (Mn), etc), non-metals (e.g. fluorine (F), calcium (Ca), phosphorus (P)) and two-dimensional materials (e.g. MXenes, MOF, graphdiyne) were incorporated with TiO₂ to regulate the charge transfer mechanism, surface porosity, crystallinity, and the microbial disinfection efficiency. The antimicrobial activity of TiO₂ coatings was evaluated against the most crucial pathogenic microbes such as Escherichia coli, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Bacillus subtilis, Legionella pneumophila, Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus mutans, T2 bacteriophage, H1N1, HCoV-NL63, vesicular stomatitis virus, bovine coronavirus. Silane functionalizing agents and polymers were used to coat the titanium (Ti) metal implants to introduce superhydrophobic features to avoid microbial adhesion. TiO₂ nanocomposite coatings in dental and orthopaedic metal implants disclosed exceptional bio-corrosion resistance, durability, biocompatibility, bone-formation capability, and long-term antimicrobial efficiency. Moreover, the commercial trend, techno-economics, challenges, and prospects of antimicrobial nanocomposite coatings are also discussed briefly.

Keywords: Biofilm; E. coli; MRSA; Photocatalyst; ROS; SARS-CoV-2.