The Role of Anatase Nanoparticles on the Mechanical Properties and the Bacterial Adhesion to Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene Terpolymer

This work aims to synthesize composite material which combines adequate mechanical properties and high resistance to bacterial adhesion. Such materials are needed in many components in the medical, industrial, and environmental applications. To obtain that combination, high weight percents of anatase nanoparticles, as bacterial adhesion reducer, were incorporated into a matrix of the ABS terpolymer. Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus, and Klebsiella pneumonia were selected for the bacterial adhesion tests. The surface properties of the composites were investigated and correlated to the adhesion behavior using nonlinear regression technique. It has been found that adding anatase nanoparticles improves the stiffness and the compressive strength of the terpolymer with a noticeable reduction in the flexural strength due to the development of minor defects in the structure. Nevertheless, a composite containing 10 wt% of anatase nanoparticles exhibited an interesting and adequate combination of the mechanical properties and the resistance to bacterial adhesion. The regression analysis produced a mathematical formula that excellently fits the experimental data. Such formula can be used to predict the bacterial adhesion to a surface based on its multi-scale features.