Synthesis of novel biodegradable antibacterial grafted xanthan gum

•Synthesis of Xanthan gum grafted with Poly(vinyl imidazoe) XG-g-PVI.•Effects of reaction parameters on grafting process.•Elucidate the structure of XG-g-PVI via several analyses.•Application of XG-g-PVI as antibacterial agent. Xanthan gum (XG) is natural polysaccharides used in food industries as stabilizers and thickener agents. The problem is that some food products are found to be contaminated by pathogenic bacteria such as Escherichia coli (E. coli) and Staphyloccus aureus (S. aureus) that reduce their shelf life. This research aims to synthesize biodegradable antibacterial XG-grafted-poly(N-vinyl imidazole) PVI and the effect of reaction parameters were studied on grafting yield (G), grafting efficiency (GE), total conversion (TC) and homopolymer (H) %. XG-g-PVI was characterized via various analysis tools. Thermal analysis showed that grafted XG was more thermally stable than unmodified XG and their stability increased with increasing PVI%. XG-g-PVI was acting as antibacterial agent against (E. coli and S. aureus) bacteria that cause food borne diseases. Their activity increases with increasing grafting yield%. Surface morphology showed change from irregular lobules shape in XG to smooth surface in its graft with PVI.