Journal of Industrial Textiles

In this research work, the antibacterial activity of inoculated cotton fabric in various metallic salts was investigated. Copper chloride, nickel nitrate, silver nitrate, cobalt oxide, antimony oxide, titanium oxide and tin chloride were used as metallic salts. Very good antibacterial activity for silver-, copper-, nickel- and cobalt-treated fabrics were achieved, however, the effect of titanium and tin on antibacterial efficiency of cotton fabrics was moderate. The scanning electron microscope was used for morphological study. Also, the crystallinity and size of crystals for inoculated and untreated samples were studied by using X-ray diffraction method. The results are truly discussed in full paper.

Fiber-reinforced materials are widely used in many industrial applications including civil engineering, automotives, marine, aviation, etc. This is due to their high strength to weight ratios compared to metal structures. One of the major applications of composites is the structural components for automotives such as bumpers, fenders, hoods, door panels. For such applications, impact strength is required since it is directly related to the passenger safety requirements. Sandwich structures are extensively used in automobiles; the understanding of their behaviors under impact conditions is extremely important for the design and manufacturing of these engineering structures. In this study, 27 types of woven fabrics were produced using polyester fibers as warp threads with different structure parameters such as weft yarn material, picks densities, and weaving structures to be used as skin layers and nonwoven fabric was used as core layer. The sandwich composite specimens were prepared using the said woven fabrics with two types of thermoset resins and fabricated via the hand lay up method. The impact properties of the sandwich specimens produced were evaluated to choose the best samples performance to be used in automotive applications. It was found that the impact properties are strongly affected by woven fabric structure parameters and the resin properties.

Due to their high capacity, nonwoven textiles have been used for a long time as potential filters to remove harmful air pollutants. In this study, needle-punch polypropylene layers were treated with powder activated carbon and nanosilver particle through pad drying and spray techniques, respectively. The morphology of treated layers was observed by a scanning electron microscope and laboratory apparatus were used to evaluate effects of microbe elimination from samples of passing polluted air. The gas adsorption efficiency of fabricated filter was measured by an air pollution device. Results showed that samples treated with activated carbon absorbed 38%, 100% and 100% of CO, NO and NO₂ gases, respectively, compared with pristine samples. Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli were completely removed from passing air by nanosilver-coated layer.

In this study, two common nonwoven fibrous dressings, based on carboxymethylcellulose and alginate, and their silver-treated forms were evaluated in order to compare their performance characteristics including fluid handling capacity, the mechanical properties, and the thermal behavior. The effect of immersing the dressings in the two fluids (solution A and distilled water) on pH was also studied. The results show some clear differences between the untreated and silver-treated dressings, for example the fluid handling and the swelling values of the dressings were reduced due to silver treatment. More considerably, changes were observed in the tensile properties which were decreased when these dressing were treated with the silver. There was no considerable effect on the thermal characteristics of the dressings upon the silver treatment. Statistically significant differences were observed in the pH over time for all tested specimens and also for both test fluids.

This study systematically compared and analyzed the structural differences, mainly involved internal group and crystal structure, between electrospun cellulose diacetate nanofibers produced from different solvent system and raw material cellulose diacetate by means of Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscope, thermogravimetric analysis, and differential scanning calorimeter. Due to dissolution and electrospinning process, the internal crystal structure of cellulose diacetate nanofibers significantly reduced. Furthermore, the microstructural changes of different cellulose diacetate nanofiber mats, which were fabricated by selecting acetone and acetone/N,N-dimethylacetamide as solvents and tuning process parameters, were investigated. It was found that the solution concentration, spinning voltage, and receiver distance had little effect on the fiber’s internal structure. In addition, the differences in thermal performance were analyzed between the nanofibers obtained from different solvents and the raw material cellulose diacetate by means of differential scanning calorimeters. The study shows that the electrospun nanofibers had quite different thermal properties compared with the original material cellulose diacetate. The crystallinity of the two different nanofibers decreases and the crystallization is not perfect, internal crystalline region in the two kinds of nanofibers reduces, and the thermal stability of the two kinds of nanofibers decreases compared with the raw material cellulose diacetate.

In the present work, chitosan was applied on to the braided silk sutures at three different concentrations and the effects of chitosan coating on the characteristics of braided silk suture were explored. The frictional characteristics of BSS were studied by determining the dynamic coefficient of friction at various normal loads and sliding speeds. At higher normal loads and sliding speeds, both the chitosan coated and uncoated braided silk suture showed lower value of dynamic coefficient of friction. Furthermore, for all the tested normal loads and sliding speeds the chitosan coated braided silk suture showed lower value of dynamic coefficient of friction than the untreated BSS. Instron tensile tester was used to measure the tenacity and knot strength. The result showed that the tenacity and knot strength of braided silk suture increases with the increase in chitosan concentration. The scanning electron microscopy reveals the uniform deposition of chitosan on to the surface of the braided silk suture. The antimicrobial activity of chitosan coated braided silk suture against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus were evaluated using agar diffusion method (SN 195920) and shake flask method (AATCC 100). The braided silk suture treated with higher chitosan concentration exhibits excellent antimicrobial activity against both the bacteria.

Pretreatment of polyester-containing fabrics with chitosan, polyethylene glycol along with N-methylol crosslinking agent (Arkofix® NDW, DMDHEU) in the presence of MgCl₂. 6H₂O/citric acid as a mixed catalyst was carried out for enhancing their printability with disperse dyes as well as upgrading their ultraviolet-protecting properties. The results showed that the changes in the depth of the obtained prints are governed by the type of substrate, chitosan concentration and steaming conditions. On the other hand, incorporation of polyethylene glycol in the pretreatment bath results in a remarkable improvement in the depth of the post-printed fabric samples. Scanning electron microscope images showed the presence of chitosan-based deposits firmly attached to the surface of the pretreated fabric samples. The mechanism of surface modification via loading of chitosan with its amino groups along with polyethylene glycol moieties onto and/or into the finish/fabric matrix was proposed.

In order to develop the functional fabric endowed with electromagnetic shielding and thermal protection ability, hollow glass microspheres were first deposited with silver by electroless plating using silver nitrate 0.03 mol/L, ammonium hydroxide 0.008 mol/L, sodium hydroxide 0.1 mol/L, glucose 0.005 mol/L, tartaric acid 0.0006 mol/L, and anhydrous alcohol 0.18 mol/L. The Ag-deposited hollow glass microspheres were subsequently coated on the surface of PET/cotton fabric by adhesive printing process. The particle integrity, morphology, composition, and crystal texture of Ag-deposited microspheres were investigated by means of size distribution, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive spectroscopy, and X-ray diffraction. The diffuse reflectance spectrum, electrical conduction, shielding effectiveness, and thermal radiant protection performances were also measured. The results showed that a specific performance of PET/cotton fabric coated with Ag-deposited glass microspheres was obtained.

In this study, the ability of Haloarcula sp. IRU1 isolated from Urmia lake, Iran, for production of cruxrhodopsin as a biomacromolecule with nanofunction from textile wastewater was evaluated and optimized by Taguchi experimental design. According to Taguchi method, the optimum conditions at which high cruxrhodopsin production could be achieved were observed to be in the presence of textile wastewater at 0.25% (volume/volume), yeast extract at 0.025% (weight/volume) and KH₂PO₄ at 0.005% (weight/volume). In conclusion, Haloarcula sp. IRU1 is capable of cruxrhodopsin production from textile wastewater in different conditions.

Textile electrodes are a new and potential choice for long term and continuous monitoring of electrocardiogram measurements. In this research, textile electrodes have been designed and developed by embroidering conductive yarn on the polyester fabric to measure electrocardiogram biosignals of patients. Silver-coated nylon thread is embroidered on 100% polyester fabric in square form 11 mm × 11 mm with satin stitches in order to form three heart vectors (V3, V4, and V5). These electrodes are characterized based on electrode impedance and electrocardiogram measurement and the results are compared with the commercially available disposable Ag/AgCl electrodes. Further, additional tests have been performed using an electrode designed with 50% of the conductive thread used in the original sample. Real-time electrocardiogram signals, QRS-complex, P-wave, and T-wave were obtained for 10 subjects using existing hospital electrocardiogram equipment. The performance and repeatability of the electrode designed with 50% less conductive thread and effect of laundering were also studied. The results showed that the impedance of electrode has an acceptable value of 1.45 MΩ/cm². Ageing tests showed that there is only a negligible deviation in the performance of the electrode. The results after laundering showed that the performance of the electrode is not affected by the laundering process.

The aim of this study was to understand the crimp extension stage of yarn, being pulled out of fabric. Polyester woven fabrics were used to conduct the pull-out tests. Yarn pull-out crimp extension depends on sample dimensions, fabric density, fabric weave, crimp ratio and the number of pulled ends in the fabric. Results showed that multiple and single yarn pull-out crimp extensions of long samples were higher than those of short samples, and the multiple yarn pull-out crimp extension was higher than that of the single-yarn pull-out force, and the crimp extensions in fabrics were proportional to their crimp ratios. Satin fabric weave showed high weft directional single and multiple pull-out crimp extension compared to plain and ribs fabric weaves. The developed regression model may be helpful for the design of multifunctional fabrics in technical textile applications.

Natural rubber composites with different contents of 1 wt%, 3 wt%, 5 wt%, 10 wt%, and 20 wt% vapor-grown carbon nanofibers were synthesized using a solvent casting method. The morphology, electrical conductivity, dielectric property, and electromagnetic interference shielding effectiveness of natural rubber/vapor-grown carbon nanofiber composites at room temperature were investigated. The scanning electron microscopy image showed there was an even dispersion of vapor-grown carbon nanofibers in natural rubber. The electrical conductivity increased with the increase in vapor-grown carbon nanofiber content. The percolation threshold of natural rubber/vapor-grown carbon nanofiber composites was about 4.9 wt% according to the power law. The dielectric property of natural rubber/vapor-grown carbon nanofiber composites had frequency dependence and increased along with the addition of vapor-grown carbon nanofibers. The electromagnetic interference shielding effectiveness in X-band microwave frequency of natural rubber/20 wt% vapor-grown carbon nanofiber composite with 1 mm thickness was 12.8 dB.