Biocompatible, antimicrobial coating shown to limit bacterial growth

A Purdue University innovation that has been shown to limit long-term bacterial growth is being developed for commercialization by Poly Group LLC, a technology company located in the Purdue Research Park of Southeast Indiana.

The patented technology, called "Nouvex," is a polymer that may render treated materials antimicrobial with regard to bacteria, viruses and other harmful organisms.

"Nouvex has been tested and shown to kill 99.9 percent of most bacteria in one to 10 minutes and can stop the contamination cycle that spreads disease," said Craig Kalmer, chief operating officer for Poly Group. "Nouvex does this without toxicity to the materials."

Kalmer said the technology can be supplied as a solid or a solution in different solvents for ease of integration, and has the potential to be incorporated into a wide variety of products and substrates such as cleaners, textiles, coatings, paints, wall coverings and plastics.