Doctor of Philosophy / Antimicrobial coatings can inhibit the spread, via surfaces, of various diseases that infect humans. Antimicrobial coatings are useful because they can continue to kill pathogens (germs) for a long time after the surface is coated. This is a big improvement over use of common disinfectants that must be applied continuously. The main goal of this dissertation research is to develop various surface coatings that are antimicrobial and can provide a rapid killing of germs. We demonstrate 6 different antimicrobial coatings that rapidly inactivate a wide variety of pathogens, such as the most recent coronavirus, drug-resistant bacteria, or fungi. The antimicrobial coatings were composed of a variety of adhesives and active antimicrobial ingredients. Traditional adhesives and recently-invented adhesives were incorporated into the coatings, and active ingredients included copper, copper oxide, or zinc oxide. In short, our coatings provide a short killing period of a few minutes to one hour. Additionally, we investigated the mechanism of action of copper oxide surface coatings, and determined that the proximity of microbial cells to an antimicrobial surface is the key to inactivation or killing of the pathogen. Also, we measured the transfer of the most recent coronavirus from solid surfaces to skin under various conditions. We found that a substantial quantity of the virus is transferred to skin. More specifically, when the virus-infected droplet is still wet, a higher percentage is transferred from the solid to skin. In addition, we composed a review of the scientific literature on antimicrobial coatings with a focus on coatings and methods that inactivate the coronavirus.

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