BIO-MICROBEADS FROM BACTERIAL CELLULOSE INCORPORATED WITH ANTIMICROBIAL OF CHITOSAN AND MORINGA LEAVES FLAVONOID

Microbeads are micro-sized plastics generally used to manufacture cosmetic and hygiene products. Their micron size makes the plastic microbeads potentially dangerous to the ecosystem and has non-degradable properties. This research goal determined the optimum concentration of microbeads made from bacterial cellulose (BC) and antimicrobial agent in the form of chitosan and flavonoid from Moringa leaves releasing inhibition diameter of bacteria. This also characterized the resulting BC microbeads through the Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) and Brunauer–Emmett– Teller (BET) analysis. An antimicrobial test was conducted by applying BC microbeads to hydrogel soap and testing its inhibition on Staphylococcus aureus. Furthermore, as evidenced by FTIR analysis, BC microbeads were synthesized through NaOH-PEG dissolution and drying under vacuum pressure. The BET analysis showed that the addition of chitosan reduces the physical properties of BC microbeads, i.e. the pore volume and the surface area. It also implies that the addition of flavonoids reduces the pore volume and specific surface area of the BC microbeads. The optimum chitosan and flavonoid concentrations observed are 2.5%, with Staphylococcus aureus inhibition of 11 mm and 10 mm, respectively.