Chitosan-modified silica sol applications for the treatment of textile fabrics: a view on hydrophilic, antistatic and antimicrobial properties

Chitosan is a natural-based polymer produced by deacetylation of chitin. Chitosan is often claimed to contain antimicrobial properties. The application of modified sol-gel coatings is a well-known technique to realize functional textiles. The combination of both silica sols and chitosan is used in the current study for textile coatings with a view on hydrophilic, antistatic and antimicrobial properties. For this, two different types of chitosan are applied in combination with two different types of silica sols. Both silica sols are water based and of acidic nature, due to the solubility of chitosan in acidic liquids. One silica sol is originated by hydrolysis from tetraethoxysilane (TEOS). For the other silica sol, besides TEOS, additionally 3-glycidyloxypropyltriethoxysilane (GLYEO) is used as a precursor. The solid content of the used sols is around 3 wt%. The concentration of chitosan is set in the range of 0.03-0.3 wt%. Coatings are applied on cotton and polyester fabrics. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) is used for the investigation of sample topography. Finally, the hydrophilic properties of the fabrics are significantly decreased, while antistatic and antimicrobial properties are hardly affected at all by chitosan. [GRAPHICS] . HighlightsSilica/chitosan coatings provide hydrophilic properties to hydrophobic textiles, such as polyester.Silica/chitosan coatings provide hydrophobic properties to hydrophilic textiles, such as cotton.The hydrophilic/hydrophobic properties of textiles can be switched.An influence on the bacterial growth can be stated, however, with no significant antibacterial effect.