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Durable antibacterial finish on cotton fabric by using chitosan‐based polymeric core‐shell particles
Author(s) -
Ye Weijun,
Xin John H.,
Li Pei,
Lee KamLen Daniel,
Kwong TszLeung
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
journal of applied polymer science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.575
H-Index - 166
eISSN - 1097-4628
pISSN - 0021-8995
DOI - 10.1002/app.24463
Subject(s) - chitosan , materials science , ultimate tensile strength , copolymer , emulsion , antibacterial activity , composite material , aqueous solution , elongation , polymer , core (optical fiber) , acrylate , chemical engineering , polymer chemistry , chemistry , organic chemistry , biology , bacteria , engineering , genetics
Cotton fabric with excellent antibacterial durability was obtained when treated with chitosan‐containing core‐shell particles without any chemical binders. These amphiphilic nanosized particles with antibacterial chitosan shells covalently grafted onto polymer cores were prepared via a surfactant‐free emulsion copolymerization in aqueous chitosan. Herein, two core‐shell particles, one with poly( n ‐butyl acrylate) soft core and another with crosslinked poly( N ‐isopropylamide) hard core, were synthesized and applied to cotton fabric by a conventional pad‐dry‐cure process. Antimicrobial activity was evaluated quantitatively using a Shake Flask Method in which the reduction of the number of Staphylococcus aureus cells was counted. The results showed that treated fabric had an excellent antibacterial property with bacterial reduction higher than 99%. The antibacterial activity maintained at over 90% reduction level even after 50 times of home laundering. The fabric surface morphology as well as the effect of latex particles with different core flexibilities on fabric hand, air permeability, break tensile strength, and elongation was investigated. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 102: 1787–1793, 2006