  Hospital-acquired infections are considered a priority for public health
systems, which poses a significant burden for society. High-touch surfaces of
healthcare centers, including textiles, provide a suitable environment for
pathogenic bacteria to grow, necessitating incorporating effective
antibacterial agents into textiles. This paper introduces a highly durable
antibacterial gel-like solution, Silver Shell finish, which contains
chitosan-bound silver chloride microparticles. The study investigates the
coating's environmental impact, health risks, and durability during repeated
washing. The structure of the Silver Shell finish was studied using
Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) and Energy-Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy
(EDX). TEM images showed a core-shell structure, with chitosan forming a
protective shell around groupings of silver micro-particles. Field Emission
Scanning Electron Microscopy (FESEM) demonstrated the uniform deposition of
Silver Shell on the surface of fabrics. AATCC Test Method 100 was employed to
quantitatively analyze the antibacterial properties of fabrics coated with
silver microparticles. Two types of bacteria, Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus)
and Escherichia coli (E. coli) were used in this study. The antibacterial
results showed that after 75 wash cycles, a 100% reduction for both S. aureus
and E. coli in the coated samples using crosslinking agents was observed. The
coated samples without a crosslinking agent exhibited a 99.88% and 99.81%
reduction for S. aureus and E. coli after 50 washing cycles. AATCC-147 was
performed to investigate the coated samples' leaching properties and the
crosslinking agent's effect against S. aureus and E. coli. All coated samples
demonstrated remarkable antibacterial efficacy even after 75 wash cycles.
