Antimicrobial Polymers

s book focuses on the coupling of plastics and biocides, with particular concentration on natural biocides and the nanofabrication of biocides, and of their final properties and activity. Chapters address the key technologies employed to impart antimicrobial behavior to polymers, including chemical modification of the polymers themselves, as well as discussing applications in food packaging, medical devices, nanomaterials, and coatings. The coverage balances outlining the technologies with explaining the mechanisms of antimicrobial behavior. Concluding chapters cover regulatory matters and human safety and environmental risks of antimicrobial polymers.

Jos M. Lagarn is Founder and Group-Leader of the Novel Materials and Nanotechnology Group of the Institute of Agrochemistry and Food Technology (IATA) of the Spanish Council for Scientific Research (CSIC) in Valencia, Spain, and is part-time Professor of Materials Science at the Universitat Jaume I. Dr. Lagaron has published more than one hundred peer-reviewed papers, a book and several book chapters, and has fourteen patent applications in nanotechnology applied to polymers. Mar J. Ocio is a Food Technologist Tenure Track Lecturer at the Preventive Medicine Department of the University of Valencia and also project leader within the Novel Materials and Nanotechnology Lab at the Institute of Agrochemistry and Food Technology of CSIC. She has a wide knowledge and experience in the handling of microorganisms of interest in the food industry. Dr. Ocio has over forty publications in peer-reviewed international journals. Ampar Lpez-Rubio is a research scientist and project leader within the Novel Materials and Nanotechnology Group of the IATA-CSIC. She has published over thirty-five papers in peer-reviewed international journals on the subjects of food technology, nanotechnology, packaging and biopackaging.