Tailoring of Antibacterial and UV-protective Cotton Fabric by an in situ Synthesis of Silver Particles in the Presence of a Sol-gel Matrix and Sumac Leaf Extract

Abstract

This research presents a new procedure for the chemical modification of cotton fabric, which included a ‘’green’’ in situ synthesis of silver particles using an extract of sumac leaves as a reducing agent. To increase the adsorption ability of silver cations, a sol-gel matrix was previously created on cotton fabric using an organic–inorganic precursor sol-gel. The presence of silver particles on the cotton fabric was confirmed by scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. The results showed that silver particles were created on the cotton fabric in the presence of the sumac leaf extract, which colored the fibers in brown. The presence of the sol-gel matrix increased the adsorption of silver cations and therefore the concentration of sliver particles, which resulted in a deeper color yield. Silver particles provided antibacterial protection, with a 99–100% reduction of E. coli in S. aureus bacteria, while the sumac leaf extract provided excellent protection against ultraviolet radiation, with an ultraviolet protective factor equaling 66.54. The coating was also highly durable in terms of its washing fastness.

Keywords

• silver particles
• in situ synthesis
• sumac leaves
• cotton
• sol-gel matrix
• antibacterial activity
• uv-protection