Microwave and nanotechnology advanced solutions to improve ecofriendly cotton's coloration and performance properties

Abstract

This research aims to utilize microwave energy and nano technology to improve the printability and performance of cotton prints via screen printing technique. Each cotton sample was individually pre-treated by microwave power ranged from 300 to 700 watts and for a period ranged from 1 to 9 min. Afterwards the optimum sample was printed by printing paste containing Remazol™ reactive dye and silver nanoparticles (Ag-NPs) with different concentrations. The printed samples were fixed using microwave energy then were subjected to steaming or thermo-fixation. The obtained results clarified that, the prints obtained using microwave and Ag-NPs were found to have better color strength, fastness properties, antibacterial behavior and surface morphology when they were compared to the conventional techniques using thermo-fixation and steaming.