Grafting of cotton fiber by water‐soluble cyclodextrin‐based polymer

Abstract

Abstract β‐cyclodextrin (CD)‐based linear water‐soluble polymers were synthesized in a controlled manner by a one‐pot synthesis method. The synthesized water‐soluble polymer was covalently fixed onto cotton surfaces by a polycondensation reaction at controlled conditions. Grafting on cotton fibers transfers the cyclodextrin properties onto its surface. The grafting occurred through the formation of a crosslink between hydroxyl groups of cotton and CD polymer. This was confirmed using FTIR spectroscopy, DSC, tensile strength, computer color matching, and solvent fastness analysis. The tensile strength of modified fiber samples was unchanged as compared to that of unmodified fiber samples. The percentage of grafting depended on a number of parameters and specifically on (i) temperature, (ii) time, and (iii) pH of the reaction medium. Similarly, under optimum conditions the weight increase on cotton fabric due to the grafting reaction could reach 10–15 wt % The grafted cotton fabric shows good dyeability and solvent fastness properties. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2009