Fourier-transform infrared photoacoustic spectroscopy evaluated for near-surface characterization of polymeric materials

Fourier-transform infrared photoacoustic spectroscopy was applied to the near-surface study of various polymeric materials including aluminum/polyethylene composite films, poly(vinyl chloride) composites, and various chemically-modified textile materials. Examples are given for surface identification of polymers, distribution of chemical additives in textile materials, and characterization of polymer surface degradation. This approach has various advantages over conventional infrared sampling techniques for the study of polymeric materials.     

A critical review of hazardous waste generation from textile industries and associated ecological impacts

Among many industries, the textile industry is the oldest industry of human civilization. Cloth is the second most important human need after food. Textile processing includes several steps in which wet processing is the most important. As wet processing involves an extensive amount of water and chemicals, an enormous volume of textile effluent generates during wet processing. Textile effluents is disposed of on bare land or on water bodies, which causes soil and water contamination. Improper disposal of textile effluents causes severe soil and water contamination. Textile effluents contain dyes, heavy metals, inorganic salts, surfactants, organic contaminants, oil, and grease. Textile effluents cause contamination in water bodies. The colour present in effluents hinders the photosynthesis of aquatic plants. Inorganic salts cause the degradation of water quality and soil excellence. Heavy metals enter the food chain and cause severe health impacts on human life. Various physical, chemical, bailogical and hybrid methods are used to treat textile effluents. Textile processing has been explained in brief in this study. The current research deals with different textile processing steps, various pollutants generated in textile processing and their ecotoxicity, various ecological crises associated with textile processing, and numerous treatment methods for the remediation of textile effluents.     

Recent Advances in Flexible Wearable Technology: From Textile Fibers to Devices

Smart textile fabrics have been widely investigated and used in flexible wearable electronics because of their unique structure, flexibility and breathability, which are highly desirable with integrated multifunctionality. Recent years have witnessed the rapid development of textile fiber-based flexible wearable devices. However, the pristine textile fibers still can't meet the high standards for practical flexible wearable devices, which calls for the development of some effective modification strategies. In this review, we summarize the recent advances in the flexible wearable devices based on the textile fibers, putting special emphasis on the design and modifications of textile fibers. In addition, the applications of textile fibers in various fields and the critical role of textile fibers are also systematically discussed, which include the supercapacitors, sensors, triboelectric nanogenerators, thermoelectrics, and other self-powered electronic devices. Finally, the main challenges that should be overcome and some effective solutions are also manifested, which will guide the future development of more effective textile fiber-based flexible wearable devices.     

Current Technologies for Biological Treatment of Textile Wastewater–A Review

The release of colored wastewater represents a serious environmental problem and public health concern. Color removal from textile wastewater has become a big challenge over the last decades, and up to now, there is no single and economically attractive treatment method that can effectively decolorize the wastewater. Effluents from textile manufacturing, dyeing, and finishing processes contain high concentrations of biologically difficult-to-degrade or even inert auxiliaries, chemicals like acids, waxes, fats, salts, binders, thickeners, urea, surfactants, reducing agents, etc. The various chemicals such as biocides and stain repellents used for brightening, sequestering, anticreasing, sizing, softening, and wetting of the yarn or fabric are also present in wastewater. Therefore, the textile wastewater needs environmental friendly, effective treatment process. This paper provides a critical review on the current technology available for decolorization and degradation of textile wastewater and also suggests effective and economically attractive alternatives.     

Thermal properties of textile fabrics

Objective evaluation techniques were used in this study of thermal properties of textile fabric. The Alambeta, P tester, and Togmeter measure the passages of air which were used for evaluation of the physiological properties. Fibrous materials were prepared in the form of textile knitting fabric COOLMAX. It is clear from the measurement that there are considerable differences in the results of measurement with described methods. Device Alambeta is convenient for the measurement and evaluation of various thermal properties. Finally, it can be concluded that this field of measurements is developing and will be the subject of further research of other methods, more suitable for measurement of the various characteristics.     

Determination of alkylphenol ethoxylates in textiles by normal-phase liquid chromatography and reversed-phase liquid chromatography/electrospray mass spectrometry

Comprehensive analytical methods based on pressurized liquid extraction followed by normal-phase liquid chromatography (NPLC) with ultraviolet detection and reversed-phase liquid chromatography (RPLC)/electrospray mass spectrometry (MS) have been developed for determination of alkylphenol ethoxylates (APEOs) in textile samples. NPLC with an aminosilica column allowed for the chromatographic separation of APEOs according to the increasing number of ethylene units and revealed the exact distribution of individual oligomers. RPLC coupled with electrospray MS was highly sensitive and enabled the complete qualitative and quantitative determination of individual APEOs in textile samples. The 2 analytical methods based on different chromatographic separation mechanisms, i.e., NPLC and RPLC, may provide complementary information of APEOs in textile materials. The 2 detection methods were successfully applied to the investigation of various textile samples, and the data of our research suggested actual pollution in real textile products.     

Using chemometric methods and NIR spectrophotometry in the textile industry

A quantitative and qualitative technique for identification of textiles, moisture measurements, textile coatings and process control was developed, using near infra-red spectroscopy (NIR) in combination with chemometric methods. These applications demonstrate by the use of computer assisted data processing the possibility of identifying textile fibers, not only for quality control but also for online textile recycling processes. In this study, seven various textile fibers (cotton, polyester, viscose, silk, wool, polyacrylonitrile, acetate) were used and all combinations of two factor blends were qualitatively identified using NIR spectroscopy and the chemometric PLS2 method for the calibration.

A quantitative analysis of textile moisture can also be performed with this technique. Water content above 50% does not deliver good results for a calibration set to determine the dampness of fibers. But to measure residual moisture from ≈0.05 up to 50%, the NIR technique is particularly good. Furthermore, the examination shows that the NIR method and chemometric methods can be used in quality- and product-control during the industrial production of upholstery fabrics. With this technique it will be possible to identify nylon flocks and to measure the residual moisture of the flocks and fabric, too.     

Wearable Solar Cells by Stacking Textile Electrodes

A new and general method to produce flexible, wearable dye‐sensitized solar cell (DSC) textiles by the stacking of two textile electrodes has been developed. A metal–textile electrode that was made from micrometer‐sized metal wires was used as a working electrode, while the textile counter electrode was woven from highly aligned carbon nanotube fibers with high mechanical strengths and electrical conductivities. The resulting DSC textile exhibited a high energy conversion efficiency that was well maintained under bending. Compared with the woven DSC textiles that are based on wire‐shaped devices, this stacked DSC textile unexpectedly exhibited a unique deformation from a rectangle to a parallelogram, which is highly desired in portable electronics. This lightweight and wearable stacked DSC textile is superior to conventional planar DSCs because the energy conversion efficiency of the stacked DSC textile was independent of the angle of incident light.     

Investigation of the flammability of different textile fabrics using micro-scale combustion calorimetry

Evaluating and analyzing the performance of flame retardant (FR) textiles are a critical part of research and development of new FR textiles products by the industry. The testing methods currently used in the industry have significant limitations. Most analytical and testing techniques are not able to measure heat release rate (HRR), the single most important parameter in evaluating the fire hazard of materials. It is difficult to measure HRR of textile fabrics using cone calorimetry because textile fabrics are dimensionally thin samples. The recently developed micro-scale combustion calorimetry (MCC) is able to measure the following flammability parameters for textile using milligram sample sizes: heat release capacity, HRR, temperature at peak heat release rate (PHRR), total heat release and char yield. In this research, we applied MCC to evaluate the flammability of different textile fabrics including cotton, rayon, cellulose acetate, silk, nylon, polyester, polypropylene, acrylic fibers, Nomex and Kevlar. We also studied the cotton fabrics treated with different flame retardants. We found that MCC is able to differentiate small differences in flammability of textile materials treated with flame retardants. We were also be able to calculate the limiting oxygen index (LOI) using the thermal combustion properties of various textile samples measured by the MCC. The calculated LOI data have yielded good agreement with experimental LOI results. Thus, we conclude that MCC is an effective new analytical technique for measuring textile flammability and has great potentials in the research and development of new flame retardants for textiles.     

New fiber-reactive UV-absorbers increasing protective properties of cellulose fibres

Several new UV-absorbers with built-in monochlorotriazine and vinylsulphone cellulose-reactive residues were synthesised. Their application properties on various cellulose-based textile materials were determined and the UV-protection factor values of modified fabrics were measured.     

Functionality of nano titanium dioxide on textiles with future aspects: Focus on wool

The consumption of titanium dioxide in today's world is on the increase. As the most popular nano substance, TiO₂ is used in various industries notably in the textile industry. More and more recently, through a synergistic combination of photocatalytic features of nanoparticles, fabrics with novel properties are produced. Self-cleaning and stability against UV rays as well as chemical media, to name but a few, are among new prominent properties, obtained on textiles. A common subject reported in most studies has been the diverse approaches to immobilize the nanoparticles on the surface of fabrics. Wool is among common textile materials that have undergone numerous processes to be modified. This review intends to bring to light different aspects of application of nano titanium dioxide in the textile industry especially on wool, and also presents a concise overview on the rigorous pieces of research conducted in this realm.     

Application of Calcium Alginate–Starch Entrapped Bitter Gourd (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Momordica charantia</Emphasis>) Peroxidase for the Removal of Colored Compounds from a Textile Effluent in Batch as well as in Continuous Reactor

Calcium alginate–starch entrapped bitter gourd peroxidase has been employed for the treatment of a textile industrial effluent in batch as well as in continuous reactor. The textile effluent was recalcitrant to decolorization by bitter gourd peroxidase; thus, its decolorization was examined in the presence of a redox mediator, 1.0 mM 1-hydroxybenzotriazole. Immobilized enzyme exhibited same pH and temperature optima for effluent decolorization as attained by soluble enzyme. Immobilized enzyme could effectively remove more than 70% of effluent color in a stirred batch process after 3 h of incubation. Entrapped bitter gourd peroxidase retained 59% effluent decolorization reusability even after its tenth repeated use. The two-reactor system containing calcium alginate–starch entrapped enzyme retained more than 50% textile effluent decolorization efficiency even after 2 months of its operation. The absorption spectra of the treated effluent exhibited a marked difference in the absorption at various wavelengths as compared to untreated effluent. The use of a two-reactor system containing immobilized enzyme and an adsorbent will be significantly successful for treating industrial effluents at large scale, and it will help in getting water free from aromatic pollutants.     

Enhanced catalytic features of sol-gel immobilized MnP isolated from solid state culture of Pleurotus ostreatus IBL-02

An indigenous and industrially important manganese peroxidase (MnP) isolated from solid state culture of Pleurotus ostreatus IBL-02 was 2.1-fold purified and immobilized using sol-gel matrix of trimethoxysilane and proplytetramethoxysilane. Lower KM, higher Vmax, hyper-activation, enhanced acidic and thermal stability up to 70℃, were the improved/enhanced catalytic features of the presently sol-gel immobilized MnP. A maximum of 100% decolorization was achieved within a short time period for the different real dyes containing textile industry effluents i.e. Nishat textile (NIT), K&N textile (KIT), Sitara textile (SIT), and Crescent textile (CRT).     

Developing Novel Antimicrobial and Antiviral Textile Products

In conjunction with an increasing public awareness of infectious diseases, the textile industry and scientists are developing hygienic fabrics by the addition of various antimicrobial and antiviral compounds. In the current study, sodium pentaborate pentahydrate and triclosan are applied to cotton fabrics in order to gain antimicrobial and antiviral properties for the first time. The antimicrobial activity of textiles treated with 3 % sodium pentaborate pentahydrate, 0.03 % triclosan, and 7 % Glucapon has been investigated against a broad range of microorganisms including bacteria, yeast, and fungi. Moreover, modified cotton fabrics were tested against adenovirus type 5 and poliovirus type 1. According to the test results, the modified textile goods attained very good antimicrobial and antiviral properties. Thus, the results of the present study clearly suggest that sodium pentaborate pentahydrate and triclosan solution-treated textiles can be considered in the development of antimicrobial and antiviral textile finishes.     

Synthesis and fungicidal properties of new bisphenol-containing oligoorganosiloxanes

New fungicidal and antimicrobial siloxane oligomers were prepared on the basis of γ-aminopropyltriethoxysilane and a series of bisphenols. Chemical immobilization of these oligomers on the surface of various fabrics was studied with the aim to develop textile materials resistant to microbiological degradation.     

A Lightweight Polymer Solar Cell Textile that Functions when Illuminated from Either Side

An all‐solid‐state, lightweight, flexible, and wearable polymer solar cell (PSC) textile with reasonable photovoltaic performance has been developed. A metal textile electrode made from micrometer‐sized metal wires is used as the cathode, and the surfaces of the metal wires are dip‐coated with the photoactive layers. Two ultrathin, transparent, and aligned carbon nanotube sheets that exhibit remarkable electronic and mechanical properties were coated onto the modified metal textile at both sides as the anode to produce the desired PSC textile. Because of the designed sandwich structure, the PSC textile displays the same energy conversion efficiencies regardless of which side it is irradiated from. As expected, the PSC textiles are highly flexible, and their energy conversion efficiencies varied by less than 3 % after bending for more than 200 cycles. The PSC textile shows an areal density (5.9 mg cm^?2) that is lower than that of flexible film‐based PSCs (31.3 mg cm^?2).     

A Review on Polymeric-Based Phase Change Material for Thermo-Regulating Fabric Application

Abstract

Phase Changing Materials (PCM) portrays proficiency to liberate perceptible amount of latent heat on the course of phase transformation between liquid-solid or solid-liquid, thereby creating momentary warmth or cooling effect. PCM has been utilized in garments for introducing thermoregulating effect to diminish thermal discomfort of clothing. Assimilation of thermal energy by PCM causes delay in upsurge of microclimate temperature and results in substantial diminution of moisture release from skin thereby leading to inhibition of heat stress conditions and enhancement of thermo-physiological wearing comfort. Simultaneously, the insulating characteristic of such garment can also avert wearer from certain pivotal corollaries like hypothermia or heat syncope, keeping the individual in consolation owing to their automatic acclimatizing attribute in accordance with body and ecological temperature. As the assimilation of PCM into various textile materials have been extensively studied by researchers, an attempt has been made to explicate the recent existing literatures that have successfully integrated and implemented PCM in textile, concentrating on characteristics of PCMs integrated into fibers, and fabrics for potential industrial applications. Finally, various methodologies like coating, spinning & lamination being utilized for applying PCMs onto textiles for developing thermoregulated clothing have been discussed & concludes with challenges & future prospects.     

Quinolines in clothing textiles—a source of human exposure and wastewater pollution?

A production process in which the use of various types of chemicals seems to be ubiquitous makes the textile industry a growing problem regarding both public health as well as the environment. Among several substances used at each stage, the present study focuses on the quinolines, a class of compounds involved in the manufacture of dyes, some of which are skin irritants and/or classified as probable human carcinogens. A method was developed for the determination of quinoline derivatives in textile materials comprising ultrasound-assisted solvent extraction, solid phase extraction cleanup, and final analysis by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. Quinoline and ten quinoline derivatives were determined in 31 textile samples. The clothing samples, diverse in color, material, brand, country of manufacture, and price, and intended for a broad market, were purchased from different shops in Stockholm, Sweden. Quinoline, a possible human carcinogen, was found to be the most abundant compound present in almost all of the samples investigated, reaching a level of 1.9 mg in a single garment, and it was found that quinoline and its derivatives were mainly correlated to polyester material. This study points out the importance of screening textiles with nontarget analysis to investigate the presence of chemicals in an unbiased manner. Focus should be primarily on clothing worn close to the body.     

Hydrophobic functionalization of cotton-based textile fabrics through a non-fluorinated sol–gel route

The hydrophobic functionalization of cotton-based fabrics has been achieved through a non-fluorinated sol–gel route. This functionalization is based on the dilution of a hexadecyl-modified (C16) alkoxide within a sol–gel derived crystalline suspension (CS) of titanium oxide in liquid solution. This latter suspension exhibits excellent stability, which allows the preparation of mixed C16-TiO₂ sols using a same CS over a long period of time. Mixed sols can then be impregnated on various kinds of substrates, including textile fabrics. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, as well as optical, atomic force, and scanning electron microscopy, have been used to study chemical and morphological features arising from such sols. Wettability measurement are then presented and discussed in relation to chemical and morphological features. It is shown that this sol–gel route flexibly yields a marked hydrophobic behavior on cotton-based textile fabrics.     

ICP-OES determination of metals present in textile materials

The aim of this work was to quantify the content of elements present in textile materials since it is known that textiles containing metals may represent a health hazard to consumers. Determination of metal content can be also useful to the textile industry since some metals present in textiles may contribute to problems during textile production. Extraction of metals from different textile materials was performed in an artificial acidic sweat solution according to the Öko Tex standard for materials coming into direct contact with the skin. After extraction from textile products made of cotton, flax, wool, silk, viscose, and polyester materials, all elements were determined by means of inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES). Results in the sweat extracts (minimum-maximum in μg/mL) were: Al 0.11-1.58, Cd 0.02-0.05, Cr 0.01-0.32, Cu 0.05-1.95, Mn 0.01-2.17, and Ni 0.05-0.10. Concentrations of other elements were bellow detection limits. The total amount of metals present was determined after microwave assisted acidic digestion of textile materials with 7 M nitric acid. According to the results, the majority of the detected elements were below the concentration limits given by the Öko Tex, and for this reason the textile materials investigated do not represent a health hazard to consumers.