Copper-based Composite Powders For Antimicrobial Coatings

Antibiotic resistance of a growing number of bacteria strains is on the way to become a global threat. Therefore preventive steps are taken to reduce the risk of hospital- and community-aquired infections. The antimicrobial efficacy of copper and copper alloys towards pathogenic bacteria is relatively well-documented and copper-containing consumer products are increasingly used. The presented work reports the examination of copper-based composite coatings deposited by plasma spraying process. A method for synthesis of ultrafine crystal structure Cu-TiO2 composite powder premix for coating deposition is presented. The structure and microstructure of both powder and deposited coatings are described, as well as microbiological results. The conducted research indicates that plasma-sprayed coatings show a high potential for use as antimicrobial surfaces.