Preparation and characterization of a novel antibacterial acrylate polymer composite modified with capsaicin

Abstract A novel antibacterial acrylate polymer composite modified with capsaicin was successfully synthesized by a two-step reaction. Capsaicin and acryloyl chloride were firstly esterified, and then applied to solution polymerization with acrylate monomers and styrene. The yield of the esterified products was about 85.3%. The polymer was characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), gel permeation chromatography (GPC), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), contact angle (CA) and antibacterial ring tests. The number-average molecular weight (Mn) of the polymer was 27214, based on the capsaicin-acrylate dosage of 6.5 wt.%. The TGA revealed a stable thermal property. The contact angles of the polymers films on tinplate increased from 77.5° to 86.2° with the increasing amount of capsaicin-acrylate. The antibacterial tests demonstrated excellent antimicrobial capability of the polymers.