Powders having contact biocidal properties

Abstract

Powders having contact biocidal properties comprise a polysacharide carrying atomic/metallic silver. The preferred polysaccharide is chitin, although other polysaccharides including chitosan, carboxymethyl celluloses and carrageenans can be used. The chitin may be obtained from deproteinated crustacean shells without demineralisation, thus being admixed with calcium carbonate and other naturally occurring minerals present in the shells, and may be enzyme deacetylated. The powders of the invention can be used as biocidal dusting powders, formulated into pastes, gels, hydrogels, creams, foams and aerosol sprays for pharmaceutical applications, or dissolved to form solutions for coating substrates such as skin, fabrics, glass, leather and paper to give a bactericidal surface. A particular application of such a solution is as a protective, post-wash treatment for workwear in a laundering process. The powders of the invention may be prepared by slurrying a polysaccharide, which is capable of interacting with silver ions and which is in powder form, in a liquid in which the polymer is insoluble, which liquid contains silver ions, filtering off the powder, washing the powder, reducing the silver ions which have interacted with the polysaccharide to atomic/metallic silver, and drying the powder. According to the polysaccharide chosen, the liquid is suitably water or aqueous ethanol. The silver ions may derive from silver nitrate. The reduction of the silver ions which have interacted with the polysaccharide to atomic/metallic silver can be effected photochemically through exposure to light. To hasten the reduction, however, the washed powder is preferably slurried in a solution of an alkali metal halide, irradiated under stirring with natural or artificial light containing an ultraviolet component, and again filtered off and washed, before drying it.

What is claimed is:  
     
         1 . A powder having contact biocidal properties which comprises a polysaccharide carrying atomic/metallic silver.  
     
     
         2 . A powder according to  claim 1  in which the polysaccharide is chitin.  
     
     
         3 . A powder according to  claim 2  in which the chitin is obtained from deproteinated crustacean shells without demineralisation, and is thus admixed with calcium carbonate and other naturally occurring minerals present in the shells.  
     
     
         4 . A powder according to  claim 2  in which the chitin is enzyme deacetylated.  
     
     
         5 . A powder according to  claim 3  in which the chitin is enzyme deacetylated.  
     
     
         6 . A powder according to  claim 1  in which the polysaccharide is chitosan.  
     
     
         7 . A powder according to  claim 1  in which the polysaccharide is a carboxymethyl cellulose or a carrageenan.  
     
     
         8 . A powder according to any one of the preceding claims which has a mean particle size of less than 500 microns.  
     
     
         9 . A paste, gel, hydrogel, cream, foam or aerosol spray containing a powder according to any of  claims 1  to  7 , or any solution made from such a powder.  
     
     
         10 . Use of a solution according to  claim 9  as a protective post-wash treatment for workwear in a laundering process.  
     
     
         11 . A method for the preparation of a powder having contact biocidal properties, the method comprising the steps of: 
 (a) slurrying a polysaccharide, which is capable of interacting with silver ions and which is in powder form, in a liquid in which the polysaccharide is insoluble, which liquid contains silver ions,    (b) filtering off the powder,    (c) washing the powder,    (d) reducing the silver ions which have interacted with the polysaccharide to atomic/metallic silver, and    (e) drying the powder.    
     
     
         12 . A method according to  claim 11  in which the polysaccharide powder has a particle size of<500 microns.  
     
     
         13 . A method according to  claim 11  or  claim 12  in which the liquid is water.  
     
     
         14 . A method according to  claim 13  in which the water contains silver nitrate.  
     
     
         15 . A method according to  claim 14  in which the washing of the powder is effected with de-ionised water to remove any excess silver ions.  
     
     
         16 . A method according to  claim 11  or  claim 12  in which the liquid is aqueous ethanol.  
     
     
         17 . A method according to  claim 16  in which the aqueous ethanol contains silver nitrate.  
     
     
         18 . A method according to  claim 17  in which the washing of the powder is effected with aqueous alcohol to remove any excess silver ions.  
     
     
         19 . A method according to  claim 11  or  claim 12  in which the washed powder is slurried in a solution of an alkali metal halide, irradiated under stirring with natural or artificial light containing an ultraviolet component in order photochemically to reduce the silver ions present to atomic/metallic silver, and again filtered off and washed, before drying it.  
     
     
         20 . A method according to  claim 15  in which the washed powder is slurried in a solution of an alkali metal halide, irradiated under stirring with natural or artificial light containing an ultraviolet component in order photochemically to reduce the silver ions present to atomic/metallic silver, and again filtered off and washed, before drying it.  
     
     
         21 . A method according to  claim 18  in which the washed powder is slurried in a solution of an alkali metal halide, irradiated under stirring with natural or artificial light containing an ultraviolet component in order photochemically to reduce the silver ions present to atomic/metallic silver, and again filtered off and washed, before drying it.