Three-Dimensional Printing of Ag Nanoparticle Meshes for Antibacterial Activity

Silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) aredecorated or encapsulatedforuse in antibacterial applications; however, their synthesis involvescomplex chemical processes. In this study, we developed a facile processfor printing an Ag NP 3D microstructure to be applied as an antibacterialfilter. The Ag NPs were printed in a mesh form using an aerodynamicallyfocused nanomaterial (AFN) printing system. Unlike the conventionalprinting method, in the proposed method, the printed Ag NP mesh waspeeled from a polydimethylsiloxane substrate. To examine this printingand peeling mechanism, molecular dynamics simulations were performed.In addition, characteristics of the Ag NP mesh were analyzed. Theresults of the analysis confirmed that the printed mesh retained theproperties of Ag NPs. Meshes with various sizes and porosities wereprinted and their performance as an antibacterial filter was evaluated.Finally, a straw-shaped prototype water filter with three mesh layerswas fabricated. A plate cultivated from a suspension filtered usingthis prototype contained zero active bacteria. This result indicatesthat the proposed Ag NP 3D printing process, which allows the preservationof antibacterial properties and has wide application scope, is anextensively viable process for manufacturing antibacterial microstructures.