Development of Naturally Coloured Cotton Fabric Bio-Medical Textiles for Human Wellness Behaviour Using Chitosan, Catechu and Eucalyptus Leaves as Natural Bio-Chemical Agents

Abstract

The cotton cellulosic fabric was initially pre-oxidised with K2S2O8 and then pre-treated with chitosan for its biocationization to make it substantive to fix anionic catechu natural dye, with or without pre-mordanting with natural potash alum, to enhance colour yield, uniform dyeing and improved colour fastness to wash and finally to utilize inherent antimicrobial nature of alum( fitkari), chitosan and catechu natural dye. Further, post-dyeing bio-finishing treatment of such chitosan-based bio-cationized and catechu-dyed cotton fabrics was accomplished using eucalyptus leaf extract by pad-dry-cure technique to obtain a strong antimicrobial and UV -resistant coloured cotton fabrics as medical textiles. Detailed studies indicate that only potash alum treatment before dyeing has a good antimicrobial character. While catechu dyeing of alum pre-mordanted cotton shows that the said antibacterial effect is partly reduced probably due to the consumption of alum in fixing the catechu dye forming cellulose-alum-catechu complex. However, the lesser antibacterial criteria are shown for gram-vet bacteria than that for gram +ve bacteria in all the cases, due to the repulsion of anionic catechu dye against gram-ve bacteria (Klebsiella pneumonia). Maximum UPF value up to 25 is obtained after dyeing of chitosan-based bio-cationized pre-oxidised cotton with catechu without K-alum pre-mordanting, While chitosan based bio cationized cotton sample with K-alum pre-mordanting and catechu dyeing show somewhat higher antimicrobial criteria and UV-resistance property showing maximum 80.2 % reduction in gram -ve bacteria growth and showing maximum 85.4% reduction in gram +ve bacterial growth, showing UPF value up to 30. Further improvement of both antimicrobial and UV resistant properties are obtained after finishing the same with 10% aqua-ethanolic extract of eucalyptus leaves in acidic media (using lemon juice)showing a 90.0% reduction in bacterial growth and achieving UPF value up to 40. Thus, this work provides a newer route of eco-friendly pre-treatment, dyeing and finishing natural resource materials to cotton to produce bio-medicated coloured antimicrobial and UV-resistant cotton fabric for the development of different bio-medical textile products like surgical gowns, wound healing pads etc.