Bioinspired molecular modeling and antibacterial efficacy of silver/graphene oxide grafted chitosan nanocomposite for food packaging applications

Design and development of novel eco-friendly materials with outstanding antimicrobial properties have transpired to impede and regulate the growth of pathogenic microorganisms. Bionanocomposites are the propitious aspirant to circumvent the global warming emanates and proliferation in pollution attributed to biocompatibility, degradability, and environmental benign primacy. Undoubtedly, silver nanoparticles are the magic bullet that has efficient antimicrobial properties against various bacterial strains. The synchronous existence of chitosan and Ag nanoparticles are the two crucial protruding antibacterial agents that divulged imperious antibacterial properties against gram-positive strains in comparison to gram-negative strains. This indagation will shed light on the experimentation and analysis of chitosan/PVA biohybrid grafted with graphene and silver nanoparticles for screening of antibacterial efficiency. The tensile strength of 15% GO/CS/Ag/PVA was found to be 81.99 MPa as compared to pristine chitosan which was 36 MPa. The active resultant bio-nano hybrid fabricated via a biomimetic approach evinced magnificently thermostable, mechanically robust, and antibacterial properties which make it a potential candidate for packaging applications. The results revealed that the inhibition is relatively dependent upon concentration. It has been noticed that a better antibacterial effect was shown by gram-positive bacteria contrary to gram-negative strains for GO-reinforced CS films owing to the presence of silver nanoparticles.