Aysun Aksit

Surface modification and characterization of cotton and polyamide fabrics by plasma polymerization of hexamethyldisilane and hexamethyldisiloxane

Purpose – Plasma polymerization is a very promising technique to produce functional textile materials for any textile end uses as well as for high performance clothing. It can be possible to obtain highly cross‐linked, pinhole free and very thin polymer films up to 1 μm thickness with unique physical and chemical properties. These films can be used as very effective barriers. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the influences of plasma polymerization of hexamethyldisilane (HMDS) and hexamethyldisiloxane (HMDSO) on the surface properties of cotton and polyamide fabrics.Design/methodology/approach – The methodology is based on the surface modification of the cotton and polyamide fabrics by plasma polymerization of HMDS and HMDSO. The fabrics are modified by low pressure low temperature RF (radio frequency −13.56 MHz) plasma polymerization system under different power and time conditions. The changes in surface structure and morphology of the fabrics are investigated by Fourier transform infrared spe...

Synergistic effect of phosphorus, nitrogen and silicon on flame retardancy properties of cotton fabric treated by sol-gel process

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to develop the flame retardancy properties of cotton fabrics with treatment of phosphorus and nitrogen containing silane-based nanosol by sol-gel process. Design/methodology/approach – Nanosols containing tetraethoxysilane or (3-aminopropyl) triethoxysilane as precursors, (3-glycidyloxypropyl) trimethoxysilane as cross-linking agent and guanidine phosphate monobasic as flame retarding agent were impregnated on cotton fabrics. Flame retardancy properties of the fabric samples were determined by limited flame spread test and limited oxygen index (LOI) test. In addition, microstructural and surface morphological properties of the fabric samples were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and scanning electron microscope. Findings – Depending on the limited flame spread test, the authors show that the coated fabric samples gain flame retardancy properties and the LOI value of the samples increased as to 45.7 per cent by...

Effect of Different Surface Treatments on the Properties of Jute

In this study, effect of various surface treatment processes on waste jute fibers, which can be used for composite material production, was considered. For this purpose, jutes (J) were treated with NaOH as a pretreatment process before the other surface treatments. Then, alkali treated jutes (AJ) were modified with silane coupling agent (ASJ), fluorocarbon-based agent (AFJ), and also argon plasma (APJ). To investigate effects of the treatments on surface characteristics and physical properties of jutes; Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, x-ray diffraction, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were used. The effects of treatments were also revealed by determination of moisture content and density of the jute particles. It is determined that alkali treatment increase hydrophilicity of jute particles with providing reactive hydroxyl groups by partially removal of surface impurities as supported by FTIR analysis. This surface cleaning is also confirmed by SEM which shows surface fibrillation of AJ particles. The crystallinity index of the jute particles increased with the surface treatments by improving the crystallite packing order. Thermal stability of the jute particles changed after all of the surface treatments. According to the findings obtained from surface characterizations and physical tests, the most hydrophobic surface was achieved after fluorocarbon treatment (with alkali pretreatment) by providing the highest C/O ratio on the surface of the jute particles and reduced moisture content, which can be benefits in short fiber or particulate reinforced composite manufacturing by preventing agglomeration of fillers.

Development of antibacterial fabrics by treatment with Ag-doped TiO2 nanoparticles

Abstract This paper deals with the antibacterial properties of nonwoven Co/PET and PP fabrics and woven cotton fabrics treated with the pad-dry-cure (PDC) and electrospray processes. Firstly, the surface modification of nonwoven Co/PET and PP fabrics was carried out to obtain their hydrophilicity by RF-plasma system using acrylic acid as the monomer. Subsequently, Ag-doped TiO2 nanoparticles prepared by sol–gel and chemical reduction processes using titanium isopropoxide and silver nitrate as precursor were applied to the fabric samples by PDC and electrospray processes. The effect of different synthesis processes of the nanoparticles and various application processes on their antibacterial efficiency was investigated. After RF-plasma pretreatment, the absorbency properties of the fabric samples were measured. The antibacterial activity of fabric samples against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus was determined qualitatively and quantitatively according to AATCC Method 147 and AATCC Method 100, respectively. The microstructural characteristics and surface morphology of the fabric samples were investigated by SEM-EDX and FTIR-ATR analyses. These results suggest that Ag-doped TiO2 nanoparticles synthesized by the chemical reduction process imparted good and durable antibacterial activity to nonwoven Co/PET and PP fabrics and woven cotton fabrics for use in wall textiles.

Construction of polypropylene composite multifilaments filled with sodium perborate trihydrate-treated jute microparticles

Abstract Polypropylene composite multifilaments filled with surface-treated jute microparticles were successfully spun by melt spinning. To enhance the particle distribution, jute particleos were treated with 5–20% (w/v) aqueous solutions of sodium perborate trihydrate (SP). X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) was used to confirm the surface treatment. XPS analysis indicated that the treatments improved the hydrophobicity of the jute by means of increasing the carbon/oxygen ratio of the surface; thus, the maximum increment was achieved after 10% (w/v) SP treatment. After determining the optimum SP concentration, the spinning of polypropylene composite multifilaments containing 0.3–1.4 wt% jute particles was employed. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) revealed the nucleating agent effect of the particles during crystallization in the filaments. The addition of fillers did not result in significant changes in the functional groups of polypropylene. The main output of this research is that polypropylene multifilaments incorporating 1.4 wt% jute particles presented the highest moisture absorption and hydrophilic character as determined by TGA, moisture content, and vertical wicking tests. It was concluded that particle content >0.3 wt% showed a tendency to agglomerate in the filament. Consequently, this study provided a new polypropylene filament having moisture absorbability performance, which can create potential applications in the textile industry.

Investigation of binding properties of microcapsules on low pressure plasma treated textiles

Microencapsulation is a process to protect vulnerable active agents such as cosmetic products, antimicrobials, flame retardants, insecticides, pharmaceuticals, etc... from external factors by coating with a thin film of shell material. Textile materials are able to carry microcapsules with these various features, thus it is possible to employ microencapsulation as functionalizer in textile industry [1,2]. Nevertheless, microcapsules have to be bonded to textile material in order to protect usage conditions like washing. There are several ways to bond microcapsules onto textile materials: chemically with cross linking or binding with resin based materials. I n t hi s study, it is aimed to improve take up of microcapsules. So that fabrics are treated via low pressure plasma to extend absorbency [3]. In this context, textile fabrics are treated with acrylic acid. Discharge power is determined as 50 to 100 Watt, whereas plasma duration is 10 to 30 minutes. Cosmetic microcapsules are prepared by spray drying technique and applied to cotton fabric by padding method. In order to track release mechanism easily active material is chosen as β-caroten and the active material is covered with ethyl cellulose. The performance qualifications such as encapsulation success, presence of core substance and existence of the capsules on the textile surface are determined by SEM, DSC, FT-IR analyses and particle size measurement. Active agent content and the altered performance features of the fabrics are examined after repeated washing cycles.