{"title":"Surface properties and antibacterial characteristics of polyurethane modified by corona discharge for food processing industry","authors":"E.C. Stancu , M.D. Ionita , A. Quade , E.R. Ionita","doi":"10.1016/j.ifset.2024.103729","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Thermal properties and durability make polyurethane (PU) ideal for conveyor belts in food processing industry. On the other hand, its susceptibility to adhesion of pathogens subjects him to surface treatment techniques. In this study, substrates of PU were exposed to corona discharge using air as treatment gas. The process parameters, such as treatment time and nozzle-substrate distance, and the microbicidal effects of the polymer surfaces against <em>Staphylococcus aureus</em> and <em>Escherichia coli</em> were examined. Changes in surface hydrophobicity occurred at short treatment times due to the introduction of polar groups, as proofed by X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS), while the surface morphology suffered minor changes as revealed by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) imaging. Moreover, the hydrophilicity of plasma treated PU was minimal affected by the variation of nozzle-substrate distance, as long as the discharge was in contact with the polymer surface. The hydrophilic surfaces developed a very good resistance to bacteria adherence in few hours after incubation.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":329,"journal":{"name":"Innovative Food Science & Emerging Technologies","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":6.3000,"publicationDate":"2024-06-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1466856424001681/pdfft?md5=7bc0acdc78d682b5a1d6ee26b291524a&pid=1-s2.0-S1466856424001681-main.pdf","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Innovative Food Science & Emerging Technologies","FirstCategoryId":"97","ListUrlMain":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1466856424001681","RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"FOOD SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Thermal properties and durability make polyurethane (PU) ideal for conveyor belts in food processing industry. On the other hand, its susceptibility to adhesion of pathogens subjects him to surface treatment techniques. In this study, substrates of PU were exposed to corona discharge using air as treatment gas. The process parameters, such as treatment time and nozzle-substrate distance, and the microbicidal effects of the polymer surfaces against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli were examined. Changes in surface hydrophobicity occurred at short treatment times due to the introduction of polar groups, as proofed by X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS), while the surface morphology suffered minor changes as revealed by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) imaging. Moreover, the hydrophilicity of plasma treated PU was minimal affected by the variation of nozzle-substrate distance, as long as the discharge was in contact with the polymer surface. The hydrophilic surfaces developed a very good resistance to bacteria adherence in few hours after incubation.
期刊介绍:
Innovative Food Science and Emerging Technologies (IFSET) aims to provide the highest quality original contributions and few, mainly upon invitation, reviews on and highly innovative developments in food science and emerging food process technologies. The significance of the results either for the science community or for industrial R&D groups must be specified. Papers submitted must be of highest scientific quality and only those advancing current scientific knowledge and understanding or with technical relevance will be considered.