DESC:TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention is in relation to composite fabric with antimicrobial property. In particular to composite fabric comprising multiple, overlapping layers integrated to provide antimicrobial characteristics. The layers are of coated and plain polyester and/or cotton material. The invention also relates to the design and fabrication of the composite fabric economically. The composite fabric can be suitably adopted for protection against health and safety hazards in a Personal Protection Equipment.

BACKGROUND
Prevention of infection and contamination mandates maintenance of hygiene and adoption of control measures like usage of Personal Protection Equipment(PPE). The protection offered by various types of Personal Protecting Equipment (PPE) for minimizing various infection is ubiquitously known and acknowledged. Personal protection equipment (PPE) such as face masks, gloves, apparel, goggles, boots are used to protect individuals from microbial infections, air borne particles, aerosol contamination and the like.

Fabrication of personal protection equipment like masks gloves, apparel require choice of materials that provide suitable protection along with flexibility for usage. The health care workers who are at the forefront in taking care of infected are at risk mainly due to the unavailability of suitable PPE that prevent both bacterial and viral transmissions, aerosols as it is expensive to fabricate and thus limit the supply. Also, the mask, respirators that are available can block microbes and particles which are of size 300nm or more.

Some viruses like Influenza virus, Coronavirus- SARS-CoV-2 have size of about 100 nm, thus it is important to have PPE that can sieve microbial transmission of said size. The current methodologies available are either very expensive or inefficient to ward off microbial infections or contaminations that are of less than 300nm. Therefore there is a need to come up with PPE which are economical coupled with protection from said microbes and other contaminations.

The present invention aims to provide composite fabric material suitable for adoption as PPE like masks, glove, apparel and for other similar uses; by adopting a simple, economical and industrially viable methodology.

SUMMARY OF INVENTION
Accordingly the present invention provides composite fabric material (A) comprising 3 layers of same or different kind of fabric materials.

Typically the present invention adopts two layers of coated polyester or cotton fabric ( layers 101 &102) and one layer of plain polyester or cotton fabric(103); and method of obtaining antimicrobial layers and integration to obtain antimicrobial composite fabric that can be adopted as PPE.
The layer(101) is a polyester or cotton fabric on which a hydrophobic polymer such as polycaprolactone (PCL) is coated to render the surface hydrophobic; the layer (102) is a polyester or cotton fabric smeared, using a doctor blade with a hydrogel; the smeared fabric is further coated with a composition comprising hydrophobic polymer like polycaprolactone, antimicrobial polymer like polyethyleneimine and silver particles in the ratio ranging from 1:1:1 to 1:1:6; preferably 1:1:1; on one or both sides; and the layer(103) is a plain cotton fabric or polyester for the comfort of the user.

The fabric layers 101, 102 are coated by simple, economical on demand applicable-air brush technology. All the three layers101,102 and 103 are integrated by weaving, stitching in such a way that layer 102 forms the intermediate layer between layer 101 and layer 103.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF FIGURES
The features of the present invention can be understood in detail with the aid of appended figures. It is to be noted however, that the appended figures illustrate only typical embodiments of this invention and are therefore not to be considered limiting of its scope for the invention.

FIGURE 1: shows the schematic of spraying of polycaprolactone (PCL) (6wt%) solution from an airbrush(105) to deposit PCL nanofibers onto the polyester fabric and SEM image of coated polyester fabric.
FIGURE 2: provides the microphotographs of sprayed PCL nanofibers over the cotton cloth and their water retention capacity from both sides for different time intervals: (A) 1minute, (B) 3 minutes, and (C) 5 minutes. (Magnification- 4X, scale bar- 200µm).

FIGURE 3: provides the micro photographs of the sprayed PCL nanofibers over the polyester fabric and their water retention capacity from both sides for different time intervals: (A) 1minute, (B) 3 minutes, and (C) 5 minutes. (Magnification- 4X, scale bar- 200µm).

FIGURE 4: provides the microphotographs (Digital image and phase contrast image) of the sprayed nanofibers of different concentrations of PCL-PEI: (A) 10wt% PCL-PEI ( 5% PCL-5%PEI in (1:1)), (B) 12wt% PCL-PEI ( 6% PCL-6%PEI in (1:1)), and (c) ( 10% PCL-10%PEI in (1:1)) over the polyester mesh and the water retention capacity of the system from both side. (Magnification- 4X, scale bar- 200µm).

FIGURE 5: provides the microphotographs of (A) digital image from nanofiber side, (B) digital image from polyester side, and (C) phase contrast image of air sprayed nanofibers, and water retention from nanofiber side and water seeping from polyester side slowly. (Magnification- 4X, scale bar- 200µm).

FIGURE 6: providesthe schematic of sequencing of three layers 101,102 and 103; composite fabric (100) and a ready to use PPE- face mask(104).
FIGURE 7: providesthe photos of testing of composite fabric for antimicrobial activity.

FIGURE 8: provides the photographs shows the plaque assay to detect the antiviral activity of composite fabric against P1 bacteriophage (specific to the Escherichia coli) with contact time of 24 hrs: (a) Fabric A: PCL, (b) Fabric B: PCL-PEI, (c) Fabric C: PCL-PEI (1:2), (d) Fabric D: PCL-Ag(1:4), (e) Fabric E: PCL-PEI-Ag(1:1:1) one side, (f) Fabric F: PCL-PEI-Ag(1:1:1) both side, (g) Fabric G: PCL-PEI-Ag(1:1:4), and (h) Fabric H: PCL-PEI-Ag(1:2:4).

FIGURE 9: shows the photographs of the plaque assay to detect the antiviral activity of composite fabric against P1 bacteriophage with contact time of 2 hrs: (a) FabricA: PCL, (b) Fabric B: PCL-PEI, (c) Fabric C: PCL-PEI (1:2), (d) FabricD: PCL-Ag(1:4), (e) Fabric E: PCL-PEI-Ag(1:1:1) one side, (f) Fabric F: PCL-PEI-Ag(1:1:1) both side, (g) Fabric G: PCL-PEI-Ag(1:1:4), and (h) Fabric H: PCL-PEI-Ag(1:2:4).

FIGURE 10: shows the antibacterial activity of composite fabric against E.coli strain TG1 with 24hrs contact time: (NC) control, (b) MA: PCL, (c) MB: PCL-PEI, (d) MC: PCL-PEI (1:2), (e) MD: PCL-Ag(1:4), (f) ME: PCL-PEI-Ag(1:1:1) one side, (g) MF: PCL-PEI-Ag(1:1:1) both side, (h) M G: PCL-PEI-Ag(1:1:4), and (i) MH: PCL-PEI-Ag(1:2:4).

DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION
The foregoing description of the embodiments of the invention has been presented for the purpose of illustration. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise form disclosed as many coatings and variations are possible in light of this disclosure for a person skilled in the art in view of the figures and description. It may further be noted that as used herein, the singular “a” “an” and “the” include plural reference unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meanings as commonly understood by a person skilled in the art.

The present invention provides a multilayered composite fabric (100), comprising same or different type of fabric materials suitably coated and integrated for antimicrobial properties. The composite fabric (100) is adoptable as a PPE like face mask, gowns, aprons, head covers, gloves, and face shields.

The present invention is related to an antimicrobial composite fabric (100)comprising three layers; wherein a layer of fabric coated with synergistic composition(101)comprising 6% wt of a cationic polymer, 6%wt of silver nanoparticles and 6%wthydrophobic polymer is integrated between a layer of fabric coated with hydrophobic polymer(102) and a plain fabric(103).

In an embodiment of present invention, the fabric is selected from a group comprising Polyester and Cotton.

The present invention is also in relation to a method of fabricating an antimicrobial composite fabric (100) comprising three layers; wherein a layer of fabric coated with synergistic composition(101) comprising 6% wt of antimicrobial polymer, 6%wt of silver nanoparticles and 6%wthydrophobic polymer; is integrated between a layer of fabric coated with hydrophobic polymer(102) and a plain fabric(103); said method comprising acts of

a) air brushing hydrophobic polymer solution on to a fabric to obtain fabric coated with hydrophobic polymer (101);
b) air brushing synergistic composition comprising hydrophobic polymer, cationic polymer and silver nanoparticles on to a fabric to obtain fabric coated with synergistic composition(102); and
c) integrating the fabric (102) coated with synergistic composition between fabric coated with hydrophobic polymer (101) and a plain fabric ( 103) to obtain the antimicrobial composite fabric.
In another embodiment of present invention, the solution of hydrophobic polymer and synergistic composition is prepared in Chloroform.

In still another embodiment of present invention, the solution of hydrophobic polymer comprises 4%-8%wt of hydrophobic polymer.

In yet another embodiment of present invention, the hydrophobic polymer and synergistic composition comprising hydrophobic polymer, cationic polymer and silver nano particle are air brushed for a period of 1-5 min.

The present invention is in relation to an antimicrobial synergistic composition; comprising 6% wt of a hydrophobic polymer, 6%wt of silver nanoparticles and 6%wt cationic polymer.

In an embodiment of present invention, the hydrophobic polymer is selected from a group comprising Polycaprolactone, Polylactic acid, Polyethylene terephthalate, Polyvinylidene fluoride, and Polymethyl methacrylate.

In an embodiment of present invention, the silver nano particles are of size ranging from 400nm to 450nm.

In yet another embodiment of present invention, the cationic polymer is selected from a group comprising Polyethyleneimine, Polyamidoamines, and Poly l-lysine.
Athree layer composite fabric (100), which is currently adopted to exemplify the invention. The composite fabric comprise two layers (101&102) of coated polyester or cotton fabric and one layer of plain cotton fabric(103).

Each of the polyester or cotton fabric layer( 101 or 102) is coated by a cost-effective method coupled with rapid deposition/coating of nanofibers involving air-brushing technique. The technique is suitable for spraying relevant compound and compositions using commonly available, economically viable air brush gun(105). One of the layers- layer (l01), a polyester or cotton fabric is obtained by airbrushing with optimum concentration of hydrophobic polymer solution in an organic solvent such as chloroform, tetrafluoroethylene, and the like. Other polyester or cotton fabric layer(102) is obtained by airbrushing a unique antimicrobial composition comprising silver nanoparticles dispersed in a media, an antimicrobial polymer and a hydrophobic polymer. The layer (103) is a plain cotton fabric.

The commercially available polyester fabric layer like poly(ethyleneterephthalate) (PET) of Grams per Square Meter(GSM) ranging from about 40-180GSM is adopted for coating, the cotton fabric is of GSM ranging from about 40-200GSM.

The hydrophobic polymer is selected from a group comprising polyesters such as polycaprolactone(PCL), poly(lactic acid), poly(ethyleneterephthalate) (PET), Polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF), Polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) and the like. The antimicrobial polymer is selected from a group comprising polyethyleneimine(PEI), polyamidoamines, poly(l-lysine)s and the like. The silver nanoparticles are of average size ranging from about 50nm to about 450 nm, preferably 400-450 nm. The solvent for preparation of polymer solutions and antimicrobial solutions is selected from a group comprising chloroform, chloroform, tetrafluoroethylene, toluene. The hydrogel is selected from a group comprising Sodium Polyacrylate, Methacrylated chitosan, Alginate, Agarose, Cellulose, Carrageenan, Poly(N-isopropylacrylamide), Polyacrylamide, Poly(4-vinylpyridine).

The air brushed (coated)layerswith synergistic composition(102) and hydrophobic layer(101)are typically arranged and woven to have the layer (102) as intermediate layer between polymer coated fabric layer (101) and plain fabric layer (103) to beget the composite fabric (100). The composite fabric offers resistance to the transmission of airborne particle, aerosol and also offers antimicrobial properties in particular. The fabric layer (103), is also compatible with the skin. The composite fabric is adopted as a PPE- face mask, gown, apron, gloves, and the like in such a way that the layer (101) is exposed to the surrounding.
The invention is exemplified by fabrication of a PPE- a face mask adopting following materials and method.

Materials and Methods:

Materials: Polycaprolactone (Molecular weight, 80000, Sigma Aldrich, ), polyethyleneimine (Molecular weight, 600, Branched, Polysciences), silver solution (N9 Pure Silver, N9 World Technology), commercially available polyester fabric of 44GSM and cotton fabric ( 100-180 GSM), air brush gun (Pilot Power), Sodium Polyacrylate and Water Gel Agri Services, chloroform (Sigma Aldrich).

The microbes available in house at Indian Institute of Science are adopted for testing the antimicrobial activity.

I. Fabrication method:

Air-brushing technique through air brush gun (105) involves compressed gas cylinder, a concentric nozzle, and polymer solution of relevant concentration in a reservoir, the technique allows rapid nanofiber deposition of polymer compounds and compositions on the fabric for suitable coating to develop layer (101) and layer (102). The Polymer solution and composition concentration, solvent, and viscosity are suitably devised to get the deposition suitable on the fabric rendering it to be adoptable in a PPE. The figure 1 provides the schematic of the coating of a polyester fabric along with SEM ( 1b) and phase contrast images(1c) of coated polyester fabric (1a) with 6 wt% of polycaprolactone solution in Chloroform solvent.

A. Coating and characterization of Polycaprolactone(PCL) nanofibers on a fabric:
a) Concentration:
For suitable coating of the polyester fabric for adopting in the composite fabric (100), the concentration of the PCL is optimized using different concentrations. Three different concentrations of 4 wt%, 6 wt%, and 8 wt% of PCL solution are formed by dissolving in chloroform and air-brushed over commercially available polyester fabric of 44GSM to deposit nanofibers. Other parameters such as pressure of 2 bar, distance between brush and the fabric of 8 cm are maintained constant throughout the experiments. The fibers obtained from all three concentrations 4, 6 and 8wt% are in nano-range(100-150 nm), and rendered a contact angle of >80. However, the nanosheet formed from 6wt% are more uniform in comparison to other concentrations, hence 6wt% PCL is chosen for further experiments.

b) Deposition time:
6wt % PCL is sprayed over cotton and polyester fabric for 1, 3, and 5 minutes and tested the hydrophobicity on one side of the fabric. For testing, 200µl distilled water droplet is placed over the PCL sprayed fabrics. Figure 2 shows the microphotographs of the sprayed PCL nanofibers over the cotton cloth and their water retention capacity from both sides for different time intervals: (A) 1minute, (B) 3 minutes, and (C) 5 minutes. (Magnification- 4X, scale bar- 200µm) and figure 3 shows the microphotographs of the sprayed PCL nanofibers over the polyester fabric and their water retention capacity from both sides for different time intervals: (A) 1minute, (B) 3 minutes, and (C) 5 minutes. (Magnification- 4X, scale bar- 200µm). It is found that PCL nanofibers retained the water droplet for a longer duration of time( figure 2(a) and 3(a) (about 15-20 min) on polyester, whereas the water droplet quickly seeped in the PCL sprayed cotton fabric (figures 2(b) and 3(b)).

The optical images of all sample indicated that the fiber deposited for about 1 min and 3 min over polyester did not completely fill the polyester fabric, whereas, about 5 min of air-brushing the nanofibers covered the entire polyester mesh which also resulted in a resistance against seeping of water droplet. Thus, polyester with 6wt% PCL nanofibers air-brushed for about 5 min is selected for the first layer to provide a first defence barrier against any aerosol particles to enter due to its high hydrophobicity, hence chosen as the layer (101) material. The coated polyester fabric layer(101) is also tested for breathability manually.

Based on the breathability test, the fabric which has been coated for a period of 5min to about 20 min can be adopted for face masks for other PPE such as surgical gowns the fabric coated for about 5 to 40 mins can be adopted.
c. Coating and characterization of PCL+PEI composition on polyester cloth

6wt% PCL and 6wt% PEI in 1:1 ratioare dissolved in chloroform for 30 minutes at a temperature ranging from about 20°C to about 30°C. The homogenous solution is air-brushed(on either side or one side) over polyester fabric for 5 min at a temperature ranging from about 20°C to about 30°C and then tested for its hydrophobicity. Figure 4 shows the microphotographs (Digital image and phase contrast image) of the sprayed nanofibers of different concentrations of PCL-PEI: (A) 10wt% PCL-PEI ( 5% PCL-5%PEI in (1:1)), (B) 12wt% PCL-PEI ( 6% PCL-6%PEI in (1:1)), and (C) ( 10% PCL-10%PEI in (1:1)) over the polyester mesh and the water retention capacity of the system from both side. (Magnification- 4X, scale bar- 200µm). In the figure 4a and 4b indicate water retention and seeping in of water respectively.

d. Coating and characterization of PCL+PEI+Ag composition on polyester cloth

To a 1:1 (PCL:PEI) solution of chloroform, 6wt% aqueous silver solution is added and stirred for 15 min and then bath sonicated at 150Hz) for 10 min. The homogenous solution comprising polycaprolactone, polyethyleneimide and silver nanoparticles in the ratio 1:1:1 is then air-brushed over polyester smeared with hydrogel like Sodium Polyacrylate;for 5 min on either side or one-side to deposit nanofibers and then tested for its hydrophobicity and antimicrobial activity. The said coated polyester serve as layer 102 of the composite fabric. Figure 5 provides microphotographs of (A) digital image showing coated side with water retention, (B) digital image showing polyester side indicating seepage of water, and (C) phase contrast image of coated polymer composition. (Magnification- 4X, scale bar- 200µm).

e. Fabrication of antimicrobial composite fabric(A):

The coated polyester fabric layers (101) and (102) and cotton layer (103) are arranged in such a way that layer (102) is the intermediate layer between coated polyester layer (101) and cotton layer (103) and integrated by simple weaving/stitching to obtain composite fabric (100).
The composite layer is suitably cut and designed as PPE such as mask, gown, apron, glove and the like. The PPE can be disinfected under UV lamp for stipulated time without damaging the structural integrity of the final design.

Figure 6 provides the schematic of a face mask(104) designed by the composite fabric(100) of the present invention, with suitable strings for holding the mask in position on the face. The mask is worn with layer (103) towards the skin. Experiments suggest that breathability factors are not compromised by the usage of the composite fabric(100) as facial mask.

f. Testing of composite fabric for antimicrobial activity
The composition of present invention comprising hydrophobic polymer, cationic polymer and Silver is found to be effective against both virus and bacteria as detailed through the experiments given below.

Virus-Bacterial/ Plaque Assay:
2% Luria broth agar (15ml each) is poured into 100ml petri dishes and allowed them to solidify before starting the experiment. Onto each circular piece of fabric samples (1 cm in diameter) coated with polycaprolactone, and other compositions of PCL-PEI, PCL-PEI-Ag (6%), and PCL-PEI -Ag(24%), is spotted 10µl of bacteriophage P1 (1013 pfu/ml) (specific to the bacteria Escherichia Coli)and incubated for 30 minutes (contact time) at humidified conditions. During the incubation period, distributed 10ml hot 0.7% agar medium in 50ml tubes for each fabric sample. After the 30 minutes contact time, the samples are vortexed in 500µl phosphate buffer saline (PBS) for 2 minutes. Then, the extract from fabric samples added to the 10ml 0.7% agar tubes followed by the addition of 100µl saturated bacterial culture (E. coli) to the tubes, vortexed for 30 seconds, and poured onto the 2% solidified agar plate. Later, incubated at 37°C in the incubator for 24 hours and imaged. The figure 7(a-e) provides the photos of the incubated samples wherein figure 7a and 7b is of control and PCL coated fabric respectively, both do not show any killing of virus, figure 7c is of fabric coated with composition comprising 6% each of PCL and PEI polymers, this indicate killing of 80% of virus, figure 7d is of fabric coated with composition comprising with PCL-PEI-Ag (6% each) which is able to kill the virus upto 60% , figure 7e is of fabric coated with composition comprising PCL+PEI+Ag in the ratio 6%,6%,24% respectively, the composition is able to kill about 40% of the virus. The result indicates prevalence of synergy amongst PCL, PEI, and Ag to kill the virus. The plausible reason of more killing of virus in presence of PCL+PEI than PCL+PEI+Ag could be due to the exposure of virus to the cation ions more in 30 minute contact time period compared to fabric containing Ag ions as Ag ions release from the fabric and for its mode of action requires long contact period like 24 hrs. To observe the antiviral activity of the fabric samples (A,B,C,D,E,F,G, and H), are studied with longer contact time ranging from 30min to 24hr and different combinations of compositions of present invention.

Interestingly, after 24hr contact time all the composite fabric samples showed good antiviral activity. The fabric samples (B, C, E, F, and H) showed one or two plaques and sample A with 118 plaques and D with 43, whereas the fabric sample G showed full grown viral culture with no plaques (Figure 8), suggested the good antiviral activity of fabric( Table 1).

The antiviral activity of the fabric samples(100) (A,B,C,D,E,F,G, and H), with different contact time is given in Table 2, the antiviral activity is tried with combinations of antimicrobial compositions as mentioned above. Followed the above protocol, contact time is of 2 hrs. Interestingly, after 2hr contact time all the composite fabric samples showed good antiviral activity. The fabric samples: A with 120, B with 180, C with 65, D with 24, E with 7, F with 102, G with 380, and F with 198 plague forming colonies, where the fabric sample E showed the least PFU’s (Figure 9), however, this 2 hr study suggested the good antiviral activity of fabric. The combination of polymers PCL:PEI:Ag exhibited approximately 10 fold reduction.

Table 1. Antiviral activity of fabric samples
Samples PFU at 0hr (B) PFU at 2hr (A1) PFU at 24hr(A2) Log reduction (Log B/A) % reduction ((B-A)/B)*100
PFU Log PFU Log PFU Log 2hr 24hr 2hr 24hr
Control 1.0x1012 12 1.0x1012 12 1.0x1012 12 0 0 0 0
Fabric A 120 2.08 118 2.07 9.92 9.93 99.9 99.9
Fabric B 180 2.25 1 0 9.74 12 99.9 99.9
Fabric C 65 1.81 2 .30 10.18 11.69 99.9 99.9
Fabric D 24 1.38 43 1.63 10.62 10.36 99.9 99.9
Fabric E 7 .85 3 .48 11.15 11.52 99.9 99.9
Fabric F 102 2.01 1 0 9.99 12 99.9 99.9
Fabric G 380 2.58 1 0 9.42 12 99.9 99.9
Fabric H 198 2.30 2 .30 9.70 11.69 99.9 99.9

* (a) Fabric A: PCL, (b) Fabric B: PCL-PEI, (c) Fabric C: PCL-PEI (1:2), (d) Fabric D: PCL-Ag(1:4), (e) Fabric E: PCL-PEI-Ag(1:1:1) one side, (f) Fabric F: PCL-PEI-Ag(1:1:1) both side, (g) Fabric G: PCL-PEI-Ag(1:1:4), and (h) Fabric H: PCL-PEI-Ag(1:2:4).

For testing the antibacterial activity, similar experiments same as for antiviral test are performed.The antibacterial activity of the fabric samples (100) (A,B,C,D,E,F,G, and H), are carried out with combinations of present invention on composite fabric of present invention, with contact time being 24 hrs adopting E. coli strain TG1. Initially, serial dilution of colonies from 10-1 to 10-8 are prepared. For counting the number of colonies, plated 10-7 and 10-8dilutions and found 5 CFU after 24hrs of incubation with 10-7 and back calculated the CFU/ml which is 109 CFU/ml. From the above dilutions, spotted 10µl of bacterial solution on the allfabric samples and incubated for 24hrs at humid environment and after elution plated on agar plates. Interestingly, after 24hr contact time all the fabric (100) samples showed antibacterial activity where fabric showed: A (11), B (5), C(12), E(18), F(11), and H(14) CFU (Figure 10), suggesting good antibacterial activity of fabric(100). The fabric coated with the composition comprising PCL,PEI, and Ag exhibited more than 5 fold reduction, the details are tabulated in table 2.
Table 2. Antibacterial activity of fabricated fabric samples
Samples CFU at 0hr (B) CFU at 24hr (B) Log reduction
(logB/A) % reduction
((B-A)/B)*100
CFU Log CFU Log
Control 1.0x107 7 1.0x107 7 0 0
Fabric A 11 1.04 5.95 99.9
Fabric B 5 0.698 6.30 99.9
Fabric C 12 1.08 5.92 99.9
Fabric D 6000 3.78 3.22 99.9
Fabric E 18 1.26 5.74 99.9
FabricF 11 1.04 5.95 99.9
Fabric G 1200 3.08 3.92 99.9
Fabric H 14 1.15 5.85 99.9
* (a) Fabric A: PCL, (b) Fabric B: PCL-PEI, (c) Fabric C: PCL-PEI (1:2), (d) Fabric D: PCL-Ag(1:4), (e) Fabric E: PCL-PEI-Ag(1:1:1) one side, (f) Fabric F: PCL-PEI-Ag(1:1:1) both side, (g) Fabric G: PCL-PEI-Ag(1:1:4), and (h) Fabric H: PCL-PEI-Ag(1:2:4).

Thus the present invention provides an extremely useful product that can be adopted in a facile manner in medical health care and research facilities for resisting aerosols and microbes. The simple air-brushing technique can be scaled-up at industrial level, coupled with the choice of low cost commercially available materials the invention render the PPE products cost effectively. The fact that it is easily disinfected by UV light irradiation makes it viable for multiple usage.

,CLAIMS:WE CLAIM

1. An antimicrobial composite fabric (100)comprising three layers; wherein a layer of fabric coated with synergistic composition(101)comprising 6% wt of a cationic polymer, 6%wt of silver nanoparticlesand6%wthydrophobic polymer is integrated between a layer of fabric coated with hydrophobic polymer(102) and a plain fabric(103).
2. The antimicrobial composite fabric (100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the fabric is selected from a group comprising Polyester and Cotton.
3. The antimicrobial composite fabric(100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the hydrophobic polymer is selected from a group comprising Polycaprolactone, Polylactic acid, Polyethylene terephthalate, Polyvinylidene fluoride, and Polymethyl methacrylate.
4. The antimicrobial composite(100) fabric as claimed in claim 1 and 3, wherein the hydrophobic polymer is Polycaprolactone.
5. The antimicrobial composite fabric(100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein the silver nanoparticles are of size ranging from 400 nm to 450nm.
6. The antimicrobial composite fabric(100) as claimed in claim 1, wherein cationic polymer is selected from a group comprising Polyethyleneimine, Polyamidoamines, and Poly l-lysine.
7. The antimicrobial composite fabric(100) as claimed in claim 1 and 5, wherein the cationic polymer is Polyethyleneimine.
8. A method of fabricating an antimicrobial composite fabric (100) comprising three layers;wherein a layer of fabriccoated with synergistic composition(101)comprising 6% wt of antimicrobial polymer, 6%wt of silver nanoparticles and 6%wthydrophobic polymer; is integrated between a layer of fabric coated with hydrophobic polymer(102) and a plain fabric(103); said method comprising acts of
a) air brushing hydrophobic polymer solutionon to afabric to obtain fabric coated with hydrophobic polymer (101);
b) air brushing synergistic composition comprising hydrophobic polymer, cationic polymer and silver nanoparticles on to a fabric to obtain fabric coated with synergistic composition(102); and
c) integrating the fabric (102) coated with synergistic composition between fabric coated with hydrophobic polymer (101) and a plain fabric ( 103) to obtain the antimicrobial composite fabric.
9) The method as claimed in claim 8, wherein the solution of hydrophobic polymer and synergistic composition is prepared in Chloroform.
10) The method as claimed in claim 8, wherein the solution of hydrophobic polymer comprises 4%-8%wt of hydrophobic polymer.
11) The method as claimed in claim 8, wherein the hydrophobic polymer and synergistic composition comprising hydrophobic polymer, cationic polymer and silver nano particle are air brushed for a period of 1-5 min.
12) An antimicrobial synergistic composition; comprising 6% wt of a hydrophobic polymer, 6%wt of silver nanoparticles and 6%wtcaationic polymer.
13) The antimicrobial synergistic composition as claimed in claim 12, wherein the hydrophobic polymer is selected from a group comprising Polycaprolactone, Polylactic acid, Polyethylene terephthalate, Polyvinylidene fluoride, and Polymethyl methacrylate.
14) The antimicrobial synergistic composition as claimed in claim 12, wherein the silver nano particles are of size ranging from 400nm to 450nm.
15) The antimicrobial synergistic composition as claimed in claim 12, wherein the cationic polymer is selected from a group comprising Polyethyleneimine, Polyamidoamines, and Poly l-lysine.