Antibacterial and UV Protective Effects of Cotton Fabrics Dyed with Brasi-Color Extract

The wood of the Caesalpinia sappan species is the main source of red dyes used for dyeing textiles and paper, stain biological samples, metals identification, as anti-convulsant, immunosuppressant, anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial and cancer drug. The main component, brazilin is colorless and to obtain a functional dye, it is oxidized to brazilein. The experimental work consisted in dyeing pre-mordanted cotton knit with Brasi-Color, a dyestuff extract of brazilwood. The aim of this research was to evaluate the effectiveness of mimosa tannin and aluminum potassium sulfate on dye exhaustion, the dyeing fastness, the antibacterial efficiency and UV protective effects of pre-mordanted and dyed cotton fabrics. The dyeing fastness is modest and need to be further optimized. The UV-Vis spectra demonstrated the presence of brazilein (λmax: 445nm and 542nm) as the main compound of the dye solution. The highest degree of dye exhaustion was obtained at the lowest concentration of mimosa tannin and alum. All the fabrics show an excellent ultraviolet protection factor (UPF>50+). The fabric pre-mordanted with 2% mimosa/4% alum and dyed with Brasi-Color transmits the lowest amount of UV rays on both UVA and UVB domains. All the dyed fabrics show a good antibacterial effect against S. Aureus.