Emerging approaches to the surface modification of textiles

Antimicrobial Approaches for Textiles: From Research to Market

“…Over the past decade, several surface grafting techniques have been studied; however, the method used strongly depends on if the textile fiber is natural or synthetic and also on its physico-chemical features. Different techniques have been used to achieve textiles surface grafting, such as: (1) chemical grafting; (2) plasma-induced grafting using either radiofrequency or microwave plasma; (3) radiation-induced grafting, which uses high-energy radiation (e.g., γ-Co60 rays); and (4) light-induced grafting using a source of ultraviolet radiation [24,52,89]. …”

“…Therefore, the surface functionalization degree is not repeatable between polymers with different molecular weight and crystallinity levels. This process may also lead to the generation of hazardous chemical wastes and can result in textile surface etching [6,89]. As an alternative, plasma treatment provides a clean technology for polymers’ surface modification without affecting their bulk properties.…”

“…As an alternative, plasma treatment provides a clean technology for polymers’ surface modification without affecting their bulk properties. The free radicals and electrons created in the plasma enable the surface activation by chemical bonds breaking to create reactive sites, functional groups or for later grafting of antimicrobial chemical moieties [6,18,52,89]. Davis et al for instance, treated a cotton/PET blend fabric with a water-repellent treatment through activating the surface with plasma, depositing vaporized fluorocarbon-based monomers and then graft polymerizing the monomer with a second plasma exposure.…”

“…Another studied approach is to fix QACs on fibers by sol-gel technology, enabling the formation of a nanocomposite polymeric network with an organic-inorganic hybrid structure, allowing a more controlled agent release. The sol-gel technique allows one to tailor certain properties and to combine different properties in a single coating step [89,94]. Moreover, according to Sun et al , for some synthetic fibers that contain fewer reactive sites or that are not resistant to chemical modification, dye molecules may be used as bridges to bind QACs to the fiber surface [95].…”

“…The assembly begins with the adsorption of a charged material onto a substrate with the opposite charge, which leads to charge neutralization and then charge reversal. Further layers are then deposited by the sequential alternate adsorption of the oppositely-charged materials onto the substrate until the desired multilayers are reached [85,89]. Recently, Cerkez et al used this technique to grant antimicrobial properties to cotton fabrics, which when bleached are inherently negatively charged, allowing the deposition of a multilayer thin film by alternative exposure to polyelectrolyte solutions based on two N-halamine copolymers [101].…”