Synthesis of Ag–Fe3O4 nanoparticles supported on polydopamine-functionalized porous cellulose acetate microspheres: catalytic and antibacterial applications

Polydopamine (PDA)—decorated porous cellulose acetate microspheres (PCA/PDA) were synthesized and employed as support for Ag–Fe3O4 NPs (SFNPs) by an in situ one pot method without additional reductants. Different PCA/SFNPs have been studied using various characterization techniques. The as-prepared PCA/PDA/SFNPs exhibited excellent catalytic property for the reduction of 4-nitrophenol within 10 min and strong bactericidal activity against E. coli. Interestingly, the corresponding rate constant increased with the increase of SFNPs amount in PCA/PDA and PCA/PDA/SFNPs showed significantly higher catalytic activity as compared to those exhibited by SFNPs deposited on deacetylated porous cellulose acetate/SFNPs microspheres (DPCA/SFNPs). The enhanced catalytic performance may be attributed to the improved adsorbability and dispersity of SFNPs via the introduction of abundant amine and catechol groups of PDA onto the PCA nanoporous structure. This work has demonstrated the PCA/PDA/SFNPs may hold application potentials in various fields.