Poly (vinyl alcohol)/chitosan/polyethylene glycol-assembled graphene oxide bio-nanocomposites as a prosperous candidate for biomedical applications and drug/food packaging industry

The graphene oxide (GO) nanoplates and polyethylene glycol-decorated GO (GO-PEG nano-hybrid) were synthesized and characterized by FTIR, Raman, XRD, AFM, FE-SEM-EDAX and MTT assay. Obtained results confirmed the graphite oxidation and also assembly of PEG upon GO plates. The MTT assay indicated that GO-PEG nanohybrid enhanced biocompatibility to cells compared to the GO. The GO-PEG nanohybrid was introduced to the polyvinyl alcohol/chitosan carbohydrate (PVA/CS) blends. The bio-nanocomposite were prepared by simple casting method. The GO-PEG nanohybrids demonstrated a significant role in improving thermal, mechanical and antibacterial properties. Accordingly, bio-nanocomposites containing modified GO (PVA/CS/GO-PEG) exhibited higher glass transition temperature (Tg), Young's modulus, tensile strength, elongation at break and antibacterial properties than nanocomposites containing pure GO (PVA/CS/GO). The biodegradation outcomes indicated that the highest weight loss and degradability is related to the bio-nanocomposite containing modified GO (PVA/CS/GO-PEG), which was also confirmed by FE-SEM micrographs. Therefore, PVA/CS/GO-PEG bio-nanocomposites can be a suitable candidate for biomedical applications (tissue engineering, wound dressing) and food-drug packaging industry.