Static and Dynamic Assessments of a Sulfur-Triglyceride Composite for Antimicrobial Surface Applications.

Over 80 MT of elemental sulfur, a byproduct of fossil fuel desulfurization, are generated annually. This has spurred the development of high sulfur content materials (HSMs) via inverse vulcanization as a productive pathway towards sulfur utilization. In this study, we evaluate the antimicrobial performance of SunBG, an HSM made from brown grease and sulfur, as tiles or infused into fabric squares. The static antimicrobial activity of SunBG tiles was assessed, revealing excellent efficacy against Gram-positive bacteria, with reductions of 96.84% for and 91.52% for . The tiles also exhibited strong antifungal activity, reducing by 96.20% and mold () by 83.77%. In contrast, efficacy against Gram-negative bacteria was more variable, with moderate reductions for (61.10%) and (62.15%), lower activity against and , and no effect on . Under dynamic conditions, SunBG-infused fabrics achieved a near-complete inhibition of (99.91%) and high reduction of (98.49%), along with a 96.24% inhibition of . These results highlight the potential and limitations of SunBG for antimicrobial applications, emphasizing the need for further optimization to achieve consistent broad-spectrum activity.