Yuyang Zhou

Bioactive and UV protective silk materials containing baicalin — The multifunctional plant extract from Scutellaria baicalensis Georgi

There has been a phenomenal increase in the research and development of new health and hygiene-related textile products. This work reports a novel approach to develop antibacterial, antioxidant and UV-protective silk using an adsorption technique of baicalin (a bioactive ingredient from the root of Scutellaria baicalensis Georgi). Baicalin displayed high adsorption capability at pH2.75, contributing to the sufficient functionalities on silk. The equilibrium adsorption research showed that the Langmuir isotherm was able to describe the behavior of baicalin, indicating the electrostatic interactions between the ionized carboxyl groups in baicalin and the positively charged amino groups in silk. The treated silk with 2% owf (on the weight of fiber) baicalin exhibited excellent antioxidant activity, high antibacterial activities against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus, and very good ultraviolet protection ability comparable to that of the commercial benzotriazole ultraviolet absorber. The baicalin treatment had no obvious impact on the functional groups, crystal structure and surface morphology of silk. The functionalities of the treated silk obviously declined after first laundering cycle and slowly decreased in the following washing cycles. Encouraging results demonstrate that the baicalin-functionalized silk is a promising material for protective clothing and medical textiles.

Facile and eco-friendly fabrication of AgNPs coated silk for antibacterial and antioxidant textiles using honeysuckle extract

Recently, there is a growing trend towards the functionalization of silk through nanotechnology for the prevention of fiber damage from microbial attack and the enhancement of hygienic aspects. Considering sustainable development and environmental protection, the eco-friendly fabrication of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs)-modified silk using natural extracts has currently become a hot research area. This study presents a facile strategy for the fabrication of colorful and multifunctional silk fabric using biogenic AgNPs prepared by honeysuckle extract as natural reductant and stabilizing agents. The influences of pH and reactant concentrations on the AgNPs synthesis were investigated. The color characteristics and functionalities of AgNPs treated silk were evaluated. The results revealed that the particle size of AgNPs decreased with increasing pH. The diameter of AgNPs decreased with increasing amount of honeysuckle extract and reducing amount of silver nitrate. The transmission electron microscopy image showed that the AgNPs were spherical in shape with a narrow size distribution. The treated silk showed excellent antibacterial activities against E. coli and S. aureus, and certain antioxidant activity. Both of the antibacterial and antioxidant activities were well maintained even after 30 washing cycles. This work provides a sustainable and eco-friendly approach to the fabrication of AgNPs coated silk for colorful and long-term multifunctional textiles using honeysuckle extract.

Influence of fixing treatment on the color fastness and bioactivities of silk fabric dyed with curcumin

Abstract The curcumin dyed silk has poor color fastness to wash, rub, and light. Two cationic polyamine fixing agents, one cationic etherifying agent and one cross-linker were applied to the fixing treatment of the curcumin dyed silk fabric. The color parameters, color fastness, and antioxidant and antibacterial bioactivities of the treated silk fabrics were determined. All the fixing treatments increased the rub and light fastness. In comparison to the non-reactive fixing agents, the cross-linker and etherifying agent exhibited stronger ability for improving the rub fastness and the wash fastness for staining, but they had greater influence on the color parameters due to their alkaline application conditions. Fixing treatment caused a great decrease in antioxidant activity, and a minor decrease in antibacterial activity. Among the four fixing agents, the cross-linker exerted the greatest impact on antioxidant and antibacterial activities due to its high ability of reaction with the phenolic hydroxyl groups of curcumin.

Bioactive and multifunctional textile using plant-based madder dye: Characterization of UV protection ability and antibacterial activity

In the present work the natural madder dye (Rubia tinctorum L.) was applied to the simultaneous dyeing and functionalization of polyester (PET) fabric. In the first part of the study the color performance and the durability were revealed for exhaustion dyed fabric. The dyed fabric was then characterized with respect to ultraviolet (UV) protection ability and antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) and Escherichia coli (E. coli). CIELab color coordinates, namely the positive a* and b* values, confirmed a yellow/orange color of the dyed fabric. From durability tests, the color showed a moderate to good light fastness and good to excellent fastness to washing and rubbing. The madder dye improved both the UV protective performance and the antibacterial activity of the fabric. With 3 % on weight of fiber (owf) the UV protection factor increased up to 106, and the antibacterial activity up to 86 % against both types of bacteria tested.

Enzymatic Washing of Denim: Greener Route for Modern Fashion

Application of biotechnology in textiles is a fast developing area in textile industry. The textile research community has showed tremendous interest in developing enzymatic-based technologies for various steps in textile processing. Denim washing with enzymes is one of the most widely accepted enzyme-based techniques in textile industry. This chapter will give an overview of current research and developments in enzymatic denim washing process. A critical discussion on recent trends and future directions will be presented in order to illustrate benefits and limitations of such applications in sustainable development of future denim washing industry.