Inorganic Coatings and Films for Antibacterial and Antivirus Functionality

ABSTRACT

The global pandemic of COVID-19 has caused serious harm to people's healthy life and the normal operation of society. People have paid more attention to the prevention and control of microbial contamination such as bacteria and viruses. Blocking the spread of disease-causing microorganisms through indirect contact with humans through contaminated surfaces, or avoiding direct contact with them, is the primary way to protect us from harm. Current solutions include designing antibacterial and antiviral surface coatings and developing personal protective equipment made from self-cleaning films or fabrics. In this paper, the work of several widely studied metals, metal oxides, metal organic framework materials, etc. with antibacterial and antiviral functionality is reviewed, their microbial inactivation mechanisms as well as performance are summarized and discussed. In the end, the future perspectives on emerging research directions and challenges in the development of antibacterial and antiviral coatings and films are presented.