Background and problem: Natural fibers based textiles are good environment for the growth of microorganism (bacteria, fungi, algae, dust mites and yeast), therefore, it is very important to using antimicrobial agents.
The antimicrobial agents inhibit microorganisms in different ways. Generally, attacks the cell wall of the microbe, inhibits the cell wall synthetics, and alters the cytoplasmic membrane permeability.
Combining polyester and protein fibres improves performance and quality properties, leads to the development of new textile products, lowers the cost of. Functional finishes of textiles include but not limited to antibacterial, UV protection, self-cleaning, and water and oil repellency.
The main task and results of the research: The present work focuses on improving the pigment printing properties and functionalization of wool and polyester/wool fabrics such as antimicrobial properties, UV-protection, soft-handle and water/oil-repellency in one-step through inclusion of functional additives namely TiO2-nanoparticles, silicon micro-emulsion or a water/oil-repellent agent into printing paste then printing and microwave fixation.
Results obtained signify that: The improvement in the imparted functionalities namely antibacterial, UV-protection, soft-handle or water-repellency and the enhancement in the printability i.e. K/S and fastness properties of obtained wool and polyester/wool prints are achieved by inclusion of TiO2-NP's (10g/Kg), silicone softener (20g/Kg) or the water/oil repellent agent (40g/Kg) as functional additives in the printing formulation, followed by screen printing and fixation using at 1300W/4 min. The improvement in the aforementioned properties is governed by the kind of additive and the type of substrate.