Recent developments for antimicrobial applications of graphene-based polymeric composites: A review

Owing to its captivating properties, Graphene-based materials (GMBs) have appeared as a broad-spectrum antimicrobial material and attracting scientists and researchers’ attention. By focusing on the recent advances in the polymeric nanocomposite’s field, current study is positioned on the graphene-based polymeric composites having antibiofilm and antimicrobial activities to confront the current situations of microbial resistance against antibiotics and other drugs. Furthermore, this review summarizes the influence of different factors on the antimicrobial activities of graphene-based polymeric composites like size, shape, number of layers, concentration, dispersibility, and functionalization, and also shed the light on the possible mode of actions of these materials. Graphene-based polymeric composites exert its antimicrobial action by physical damages (e.g., direct sharp edges’ contact to cell membranes of bacteria, wrapping of the bacterial cell, phospholipid extraction, and photo-thermal ablation) and chemical damages (e.g. oxidative-stress and charge transfer). Besides, this review article thoroughly describes the antimicrobial applications of graphene-based polymeric composites, which are because of their good biocompatibility and superior antimicrobial properties such as wound bandages and dressings, antimicrobial coatings, drug delivery, food packaging, hydrogel formation, and water disinfection. Present review may stimulate major concerns, spur further developments, and provide valuable insight into the promising fields.