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Philipps-University Marburg

Characterized by progress and tradition, the Department of Chemistry at the Philipps-University of Marburg belongs to the biggest chemisty departments in Germany, ranks among the top places for research in material science worldwide, looks back on a history of more than 500 years and gave birth to the first chair in chemistry at all.

In the work groups of Prof. Greiner and Prof. Agarwal at the Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry and the Scientific Center of Material Science, innovative functional materials based on nanoscaled polymer and composite fibers, functional nanoparticles, as well as smart, functional and biodegradable polymers are developed and investigated. Topics are thereby associated with issues of both fundamental as well as application-oriented research.

A particular focus lies on antibacterial nanomaterials. On the one hand the increasing number of multiresistant bacteria-strains leads to a strong requirement of novel antimicrobial materials for medical applications and on the other hand, there is a persistant demand for objects of everyday use with antibacterial properties, ranging from household and hygienic applications up to functional textiles. Hence, varied approaches to equip materials with antimicrobial properties are highlighted:

• Antibacterial nanocoatings with polymeric biocides

• Antibacterial materials containing nanoparticles

• Antibacterial nanofibers by electrospinning

• Antibacterial and biodegradable polymers

In addition, the technique of ‘green electrospinning’ was developed as a safe and environmentally-friendly method to produce water-insoluble, biodegradable polymer nanofibers from aqueous formulations for applications in medicine, pharmacy, and agriculture.