Modification of cotton fabric with a dendrimer to improve ink-jet printing process

Abstract

In this study, the cotton fabrics were modified with different polyamidoamine (PAMAM) dendrimer concentrations to yield antimicrobial and efficient polymeric materials for ink-jet printing. PAMAM dendrimer has been covalently grafted on cotton fabric via the reaction of cellulosate anion with the cynuric chloride. The obtained modified cotton fabrics were characterized by FTIR and TGA. The morphology and yellowness of modified cotton fabrics were analysed by SEM and UV spectroscopy. The ink-jet printing onto modified cotton fabrics were evaluated at different pHs. The results at optimum pH indicated that by increasing the PAMAM dendrimer concentration in modified cotton fabric not only the colour strength of reactive ink-jet printed fabric increased but also the antimicrobial cotton fabric produced. A comparision between printing modified and unmodified cottons suggest that the PAMAM dendrimer has the potential for using in single-phase ink-jet printing. The yielded prints demonstrate excellent colour fastness for washing and dry/wet crocking properties.

Keywords: Antimicrobial; Cotton; Dendrimer; Ink-jet; Printing; Reactive dye.