Sustainable Practices in the Textile Industry

The authors who contributed to this book are specialists in fields involved in using different dyeing systems other than aqueous solvent, employing enzymes in dyeing procedures, surface modifications, sustainable developments for textile manufactures, functional finishing and different advanced techniques for wastewater remediation. Thus, the editors hope that students, researchers and academicians of various fields, such as textile dyeing, chemical engineering, environmental science, materials science among others, will find this book of great interest and useful in their curriculum. We expect it will definitely be helpful for engendering new ideas in textiles research, leading to interdisciplinary research collaborations.

Now the time has come to thank those who supported this book in any way. We acknowledge the great efforts of the eminent authors without whom this book would have been unimaginable. We also appreciate the interest shown and the support given by the publisher, which allowed us to compile this reference book.

Luqman Jameel Rather

Aminoddin Haji

Mohd Shabbir

Sanjeeda Iqbal and Taiyaba Nimra Ansari*

Department of Botany, Govt. Holkar Science College, Indore, India

Abstract

Environmental pollution and population explosion are becoming the world’s biggest issues. Eco friendly products and practices are popularizing day by day due to present national and international awareness on environmental situations. Textile industries are one of the reasons of environmental pollution and affect all forms of life adversely. Textile dyeing process generally uses chemical dyes and synthetic mordants. Chemicals in the dyeing process began with the discovery of “Mauve” by WH Perkin in 1856. These synthetic dyes are manufactured from coal tar, petrochemicals and many other chemicals, which cause allergies such as contact dermatitis, respiratory diseases, skin irritation and cancer etc. Naturally dyed textile materials are in demand globally because of harmful effects of chemical dyeing and continuous efforts of researchers in this field. Natural dyes can be obtained from natural resources like plants, minerals, insects and fungi but most of the dyes are taken from plant parts i.e. leaves, barks, flowers, fruits and roots. Natural dyes have some special properties like soothing color, biodegradable, non-hazardous, non-carcinogenic and antimicrobial resistance etc. Natural dye extraction process requires plant parts and sometimes their by-products as a raw material. Natural dyeing practices enhance the cultivation of flowering crops, which provides an extra source of income to farmers. Thus, large scale production of naturally dyed fabric in future will solve the problem of human as well as environmental health.

Keywords:Natural dyes, source, fiber, mordant, dyeing, fastness, antibacterial, UV-protection

In the present scenario people are more inclined to be nature-friendly, health conscious and become aware about the environment. The meticulous environmental standards are being imposed by many countries in response to the toxic and allergic reactions associated with synthetic dyes. It has created a revolution in research and development in eco-friendly and non-toxic colorant. Environmental considerations are now becoming vital factors during the selection of consumer goods including textile as well as in cosmetic, pharmaceutical and food industry all over the world. Coloring agent or dyes play an important role in all these industries during manufacturing and other production process. Both qualitative and quantitative research investigations have been undertaken all over the world on safe coloring substance. Natural dyes are widely used in following application ( Figure 1.1):

Figure 1.1 Schematic representation of applications of natural dyes.

a. Textile Coloration

Coloring of textile material is called dyeing. Dyeing is a process to enhance the beauty of fiber or fabric by coloring them. The coloring compounds can be synthetic or natural and capable of being fixed to fabric defined as dye. India is a diverse country of region and culture. Dyeing practices varied immensely due to availability of local dye-yielding plants and minerals, the natural sources. Until year 1856, these natural sources were used in coloring but with the discovery of chemical dyes, the use of natural dyes decreased. The side effects of the continuous use of chemical dyes gradually began toappear as health problems and skin diseases that resulted by wearing synthetic dyed fabric for decades. Hazardous chemicals were used in the manufacture of dyes in large scale for rapid growth of textile industries. All those synthetic, hazardous chemicals disposed of in nature after dye preparation, coloring and printing, which ultimately created various pollution problems in the environment. Keeping this situation in mind, many experiments are being done by scientists and researchers for the development of new sources and techniques of natural colors, so that it can be adopted by textile industries on a large scale. There is an increasing awareness among humans about their health and nature, due to which the demand for eco-friendly clothes is also increasing. Natural clothes can be obtained at a higher price from some small scale industries and handlooms, but they are not able to meet the demand of all people. In the past few years, many research works related to natural dye have been done. In this chapter, an attempt has been made to exhibit how natural dyes are used on clothes and their significance for human health and nature.

b. Food Coloration

Human appetizer and choice of food are influenced by color. Food colors are used in processed food, drinks and condiments. They are often added to maintain and improve the appearance of the food. The addition of saffron, turmeric and other spices are reported from ancient times. Commercially available colors are made of chemicals that can be harmful to human and environment. Therefore, natural food colors are in demand again. Most commonly used natural food dyes are saffron, turmeric, annatto, beetroot and carrot etc.

c. pH Indicator

pH is measure of relative amount of free hydrogen and hydroxyl ions in water. The range of pH is in between 0 and 14, where 7 is considered neutral. pH greater than 7 indicates the base, whereas pH less than 7 indicates acidity. A pH indicator is a compound that changes color in solution over a narrow range of pH value. Small amount of indicator compound is sufficient to produce a visible color change. There are many colors of indicators in nature thus, influenced by change in pH range. Some of the natural dyes show color changes with variation of pH. Red cabbage dye is very good example of natural pH indicator [1].

d. Histology Staining

Study of the microanatomy of cells, tissue and organs is called histology. Observations of cells are performed with the help of a microscope. Staining is the technique to highlight and differentiate the structure of tissue. Stain and dyes are applied in staining on tissue and cells. Dyes also can be used to color cells, tissue, organelles as well as microorganism such as bacteria and fungi [2]. Saffron, a natural dye extracted from Saffron crocus was the first stain in histology used by Antonie van Leeuwenhoek, the father of microbiology [3]. Hematoxylin stain is a naturally occurring dye found in Logwood tree widely used in histological study. Researchers also found Punica granatum , Curcuma longa , Syzygium cumini and Sorghum bicolor effective in staining [4–7].