Coloration of poly(lactic acid) based textiles - a review

Abstract

Polyester fibers include industrially important cellulose acetate, poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET), poly(1,4-cyclohexane dimethylene terephthalate) (PCDT), poly(trimethylene terephthalate) (PTT), poly(lactic acid) (PLA) fibers; however, it is the last one that has been considered to be a "green" one. PLA is an eco-friendly polyester material that is obtained from renewable resources. The effect of chromophoregens and substituents on exhaustion, colorimetric and fastness properties of PLA with newly developed disperse dyes has been outlined. The differences in colorimetric properties, wavelength-shift and deep-dyeing behavior of PLA as compared to PET have been explained. Use of non-aqueous dyeing media such a super critical carbon dioxide (sc-CO 2), various organic solvents and carriers have been discussed.