Cotton has the shortcomings of having no antibacterial, antioxidant and ultraviolet (UV) protection properties, which are of great importance for health protection purposes. In the present study, grape seed extract (GSE) mainly composed of proanthocyanins (tannins) was employed to simultaneously import pale colors and the three aforementioned functions to cotton fabric. The tests on the application conditions of GSE showed that pH and GSE concentration had great impact on the color depth of cotton fabric, and the color hue of dyed fabric could be controlled in the absence of pH regulators due to the weakly acidic nature of GSE solution. The fabric dyed with 10%owf (on the weight of fabric) GSE exhibited an excellent inhibition effect towards Escherichia coli, whereas the one dyed with 20%owf GSE had high antioxidant activity of 97%. The fabric dyed with 5%owf GSE offered excellent UV protection. This study reveals that GSE can be used as a functional finishing agent for health protection in cotton textiles in addition to coloration capability.
Keywords: UV protection; antibacterial; antioxidant; cotton; grape seed extract; tannins.