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The objective of this study was to develop tri-laminate antiviral surgical gown using polyester nonwoven as an outer layer, microporous polytetrafluroethylene as a middle layer and viscose nonwoven as an inner layer. Antibacterial and antiviral properties were imparted to the outer layer of surgical gown by finishing with the synthesized nanocomposite dispersion. The structure, morphology, and crystalline size of the nanosample were characterized using high resolution transmission electron microscopy and the finishing was done using pad-dry-cure method. The pore sizes of the polyester and viscose were characterized using a trinocular microscope. The tri-laminate fabric was formed using fusing machine. Liquid barrier properties of tri-laminate surgical fabric were analyzed through viral penetration, hydrostatic pressure, and moisture vapor transfer rate tests. It is observed that the polyester tri-laminate gown offers level 4 protection according to the barrier protection classification of Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The aim of this research is to improve the dyeability and antibacterial activity of silk fabric using natural fungal extract. The natural fungal pigment is extracted from the thermophilic fungi-basedspecies, namely Thermomyces, purified and characterized using Fourier transform infrared spectra, and subjected for the dyeing process. An experiment using Box and Behnken is designed with three levels and three variables using pH, temperature, and time as independent variables and with wash fastness, rubbing fastness, light fastness, and bacterial reduction (%) as dependent variables, and the conditions are optimized. Regression equations are obtained to analyze the fastness properties and bacterial reduction (%), and the optimum process parameters are identified. The result shows that the optimum conditions for dyeing the silk fabric by fungal pigmentation is 2% owm at 60℃ for 30 min, maintaining a pH of 3. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Twelve stretchable fabrics are woven in two sets with one set in 50s and 60s 100% cotton in warp and 40s, 50s, and 60s cotton core spun lycra yarn in weft and another set with 2/75 and 2/120 Nm silk in warp with 40s, 50s, and 60s cotton core spun lycra yarn in weft. Hundred percent cotton sari blouse materials commercially available in the market are also included for a comparative study of pressure distribution between cotton core spun lycra fabrics and cotton blouse materials. The influence of fabric specification on total hand value (THV), stretch properties, and pressure comfort is analyzed. The effects of body shape and fabric mechanical properties on garment pressure are also analyzed. The results indicated that the finer counts of cotton core spun lycra woven with cotton and silk to elasticize fabrics provided improved hand feel, stretch, and pressure comfort values. The average pressure value of the samples at the major pressure points with the cotton/cotton core spun lycra samples and silk/cotton core spun lycra samples is lower than 100% cotton samples' fabric physical properties, stretch properties, mechanical properties, and THV significantly influenced the pressure distribution and comfort of garments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, a conductive polyaniline-coated nylon lycra fabric has been characterized for electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding and strain sensor application. The conductive fabric is fabricated by in-situ polymerization of polyaniline on the nylon lycra fabric at low temperature. Characterization has been carried out using scanning electron microscopy and differential scanning calorimetry. The sensitivity of the developed fabric sensor is characterized using Zwick tensile tester. EMI shielding efficiency (SE) of the developed fabrics is carried out as per ASTM D4935 standard. The stability of the developed sensor is characterized with respect to temperature and humidity using Programmable Environmental Test Chamber. The measurement of the conductivity change with strain shows that the fabrics so prepared exhibits high strain sensitivity, while its good stability is indicated by a small loss of conductivity after the thermal and humidity ageing tests and supported by the slight change in conductivity over storage of 90 days. The sensor measures flexion angle of elbow up to 120° angle. The electromagnetic shielding tests show that the developed conductive fabric has the EMI SE of 26 dB in the frequency range of 8–12 GHz. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The article discusses a study that was conducted to improve the dyeability and antimicrobial activity on the natural fungal extract of wool fabric using low temperature plasma treatment. The study performed minimum inhibitory concentration to test the antimicrobial activity of the methanolic extract of Ptisana purpuroscens, Thermomyces species and Chatomium species. The study concluded that the low temperature plasma pretreated wool fabric are better than untreated wool fabric specimen.

The article focuses on the assessment of polluted waste effluents within the denim processing industry. Evaluated is the reuse of the textile wastewater through the denim processing Continuous Dyeing Range (CDR) machine. Also explored are causes of high organic and inorganic pollution load within the textile sector.

This study focuses on the role of bacteria and the effect of textile structure on the odour formation. Cotton knitted fabric made of three different structures are selected based on their commercial importance. The knitted samples are given for human wear trial and the effect of structure on odour formation is analysed. It is found that the rib structure has the high odour intensity rating and the least value is observed for plain jersey. This is explained in terms of thickness and mass per square meter of the fabric. Sensory evolution test is performed by the expert team and it is confirmed that the higher the mass and loop density, the higher is the odour formation. The thicker fabric enhances the optimum environment in the axilla region for better bacterial growth. This is confirmed by the bacterial isolation process and swab analysis, the thicker the structure (rib) the higher is the presence (CFTJ/ml) of corynebacterium Sp., Bacillus Sp. and Staphylococcus Sp. groups than in the thinner structure (single jersey). Higher amount of carboxylic acid is formed in the axilla region as a metabolic byproduct of bacteria. The formation of carboxylic acid in the textile material after wear trial is further confirmed objectively by PTR-MS and FTIR studies, where fragments of butyric, valeric and isobutryic acid along with acetates groups are identified. Response surface methodology is adapted to study the effect of fabric parameter on odour formation. Using this experimental design, the general relationships relating the properties with variables as well as the significant terms in these relationships are computed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this research an attempt has been made to reduce the odor formation in textile material with the help of Terminalia chebula finish. Knitted cotton textile materials with different structures were used for in-vivo analysis. The initial study shows that, the odor formation in textile material is strongly correlated with the thickness and mass per square meter. The odor analysis was repeated after the Terminalia chebula extract finishing. The subjective analysis results of treated fabric shows significantly lower odor intensity after in-vivo study. In the finished textile, rib structure with high thickness and mass possessed low odor than single jersey. Further it is also confirmed the bacterial reduction in the axilla worn material objectively. The bacterial isolation was performed and count was analyzed and the results shows a significant reduction in bacterial percentage. The test results on the effectiveness of Terminalia chebula treatment against the odor causing bacterial strains like Staphylococcus aureus (MTCC 737), Corynebacterium Sp (MTCC 8730), Corynebacterium Sp (ATCC 3021), B. licheniformis (MTCC 429), M. luteus (ATCC 49732), Corynebecteriurn acnes (MTCC1951), Pseudomonas Sp.,(MTCC 6628), Escherichia coli (MTCC 1687), shows that there is a maximum bacterial reduction in terms of zone of inhibition up to 42 mm. The FTIR studies confirm the presence of active substance like tannins, phenols and saponins on the finished fabric, which in turns inhibiting odor formation. Hence, this study suggests an alternative and eco-friendly way of finishing in textile material against odor propagation and retention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aspects of workers health and safety become more and more globally important which offers new or extended chances for the fabric and garment manufacturers. Millions of professionals need appropriate protective clothing against the risks of heat and flame, chemicals, harmful climate conditions or other extreme risks in their working environments. And both, awareness and desire to protect people during their work worldwide is increasingly in the focus of commonality and responsible organizations. The paper briefly describes the performance requirement as well as the design of specialized fabric to provide protection at the workplace. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electrically conductive polyester fabrics are investigated in this work in order to develop textile electrodes for Eelectroencephalogram (EEG) measurement. Electrically conductive polyester fabrics have been prepared by electroless copper plating method. These fabrics are then characterized by SEM and XRD. The electrical conductivity of the fabric samples is also studied. The structural studies show that the crystalline region of fabric structure is not affected by the plating. The SEM studies reveal a very uniform deposition of copper on the fabrics. The conductivity studies show that the treated fabrics have good electrical conductivity. The developed copper plated fabric was used to develop the textile electrodes for Eelectroencephalogram (EEG) measurement. The acquired signals were compared with commercially available electrodes and the signals were found to be similar. The good measurement performance exhibited by the textile electrodes indicates that they are feasible candidates for EEG recording, opening the door for long-term EEG monitoring applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Stretchable plain woven fabrics are developed with 60s cotton core spun Lycra and polyester Lycra twisted yarn (91D) in weft with cotton, silk and polyester in warp. The influence of fabric specifications on thermal comfort, low stress mechanical properties, primary and total hand value is analyzed. The results indicated that cotton core spun Lycra woven with polyester warp provided higher value of thermal conductivity, air permeability and water vapor permeability. The woven stretch fabrics produced with polyester warp, cotton core spun Lycra and polyester Lycra in weft has excellent aesthetic and drape properties. These fabrics have higher tensile resilience, tensile strain, lower shear rigidity, superior primary hand and a higher total hand value of 4.08 and 3.93 respectively and are best suitable for women's blouse. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The World Wide Web has rich source of voluminous and heterogeneous information which continues to expand in size and complexity. Many Web pages are unstructured and semi-structured, so it consists of noisy information like advertisement, links, headers, footers etc. This noisy information makes extraction of Web content tedious. Many techniques that were proposed for Web content extraction are based on automatic extraction and hand crafted rule generation. Automatic extraction technique is done through Web page segmentation, but it increases the time complexity. Hand crafted rule generation uses string manipulation function for rule generation, but generating those rules is very difficult. A hybrid approach is proposed to extract main content from Web pages. A HTML Web page is converted to DOM tree and features are extracted and with the extracted features, rules are generated. Decision tree classification and Naïve Bayes classification are machine learning methods used for rules generation. By using the rules, noisy part in the Web page is discarded and informative content in the Web page is extracted. The performance of both decision tree classification and Naïve Bayes classification are measured with metrics like precision, recall, F-measure and accuracy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The inner padding layer of the motorcycle helmet is one of the important components that control the factors of comfort during wearing the helmet and provides a perfect fit and stability of the helmet on the head. The inner padding consists of a low-density flexible polyurethane layer attached to a soft fabric layer that is in direct contact with the head. The present study aims to replace foam in the comfort liner of a helmet with spacer fabrics to avoid the risk of heat stress during the use of the helmet. In this work, 9 warp-knitted spacer fabrics were produced by varying the course/cm (10, 12 & 14) and thickness (3, 3.5, and 4 mm). Air permeability, thermal, and water vapour resistance of the developed spacer fabrics were characterized along with compression properties and compared with commercially available standard liner. The results showed that warp-knitted spacer fabrics had better energy absorption compared to the standard liner. Also, the developed spacer fabrics had better breathability and evaporative heat transfer compared to the standard liner. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The methanol extracts of Terminalia chebula fruits as antibacterial agent and citric acid as a crosslinking agent have been applied on cotton plain woven fabric and the treated fabrics are then tested for antibacterial activity against bacterial strains like Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli, under agar diffusion test and quantitative assessment. The results indicate that the treated cotton fabric shows a clear antibacterial activity with 27-38 mm zone of inhibition in the agar diffusion test against the above-mentioned strains. The treated samples show 93.33% of reduction against Staphylococcus aureus and 82.14 % reduction against Escherichia coli as per quantitative assessment. The antibacterial finished textile samples have also been evaluated for the physical properties like tensile strength, tearing strength, water absorbency and air permeability. Process parameters are optimized for better performance of antibacterial treated material by the response surface methodology adopted using Box - behnken design and the regression equations have been obtained for fabric properties. The optimized process parameters for higher antibacterial ability of the treated textile material with optimum physical properties are extract concentration of 25%, crosslinking agent of 7.5% and the curing temperature of 94.16°C. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study is aimed at evaluating and optimizing the dyeing potential of fungal pigment for different fabrics. The yellow pigment produced from Thermomyces sp. has been purified and used for dyeing processes. The effect of process parameters of dyeing, such as pH, temperature, time duration, mordants, colour intensity and fastness properties, has been studied and the conditions are optimized. The dyeing capacity of Thermomyces sp pigments is studied in cotton, silk and wool fabrics. The pigment shows high affinity with silk fabrics and is found to give good light fastness (rating 4), colour fastness to washing (rating 4-5) and colour fastness to rubbing (rating 3-4). The optimum conditions for dyeing are found to be 30 °C, 3 pH, Myrobalan mordant and 20 rain duration. The pigment shows a maximum bacteria reduction in the silk dyed sample against Salmonella typhi (51.05 %). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Metallic wire based single jersey knitted fabrics were produced in different construction to study the electromagnetic shielding characteristics. In one construction, bare silver coated copper wire along with cotton yarn was used to knit fabric by ‘plating’ technique. In another construction, core spun metallic wire yarn produced by ring spinning was used to knit fabrics in two different loop lengths. Scattering (S) parameters for reflection (S11) and transmission (S21) obtained for the fabrics by ASTM D4935 standard using coaxial transmission fixture and network analyser were analysed in the frequency range of 30–1500 MHz. All fabrics exhibited shielding effectiveness of 40 dB and above in low frequency region, the minimum mark for safer application to solve electromagnetic interferences. Fabric produced by ‘plating’ technique showed better electromagnetic shielding than core spun yarn knitted fabrics whereas no marked difference in shielding was noticed between the core spun yarn fabrics produced in two different loop lengths. However, fabric with smaller loop length showed a marginal increase in shielding at low frequency. Core spun yarn knitted fabrics show resonance peaks of reflection at different frequencies which suggest the possibility of tailoring frequency selective surfaces for high pass/no pass filtering. Antibacterial activity of the fabrics as per AATCC 100 test method was moderate with 60–63% bacterial reduction against the bacterium Escherichia coli. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Textile electrodes are a new and potential choice for long term and continuous monitoring of electrocardiogram measurements. In this research, textile electrodes have been designed and developed by embroidering conductive yarn on the polyester fabric to measure electrocardiogram biosignals of patients. Silver-coated nylon thread is embroidered on 100% polyester fabric in square form 11 mm × 11 mm with satin stitches in order to form three heart vectors (V3, V4, and V5). These electrodes are characterized based on electrode impedance and electrocardiogram measurement and the results are compared with the commercially available disposable Ag/AgCl electrodes. Further, additional tests have been performed using an electrode designed with 50% of the conductive thread used in the original sample. Real-time electrocardiogram signals, QRS-complex, P-wave, and T-wave were obtained for 10 subjects using existing hospital electrocardiogram equipment. The performance and repeatability of the electrode designed with 50% less conductive thread and effect of laundering were also studied. The results showed that the impedance of electrode has an acceptable value of 1.45 MΩ/cm2. Ageing tests showed that there is only a negligible deviation in the performance of the electrode. The results after laundering showed that the performance of the electrode is not affected by the laundering process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the present work, chitosan was applied on to the braided silk sutures at three different concentrations and the effects of chitosan coating on the characteristics of braided silk suture were explored. The frictional characteristics of BSS were studied by determining the dynamic coefficient of friction at various normal loads and sliding speeds. At higher normal loads and sliding speeds, both the chitosan coated and uncoated braided silk suture showed lower value of dynamic coefficient of friction. Furthermore, for all the tested normal loads and sliding speeds the chitosan coated braided silk suture showed lower value of dynamic coefficient of friction than the untreated BSS. Instron tensile tester was used to measure the tenacity and knot strength. The result showed that the tenacity and knot strength of braided silk suture increases with the increase in chitosan concentration. The scanning electron microscopy reveals the uniform deposition of chitosan on to the surface of the braided silk suture. The antimicrobial activity of chitosan coated braided silk suture against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus were evaluated using agar diffusion method (SN 195920) and shake flask method (AATCC 100). The braided silk suture treated with higher chitosan concentration exhibits excellent antimicrobial activity against both the bacteria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study aims at evaluating and optimizing the dyeing potential of fungal pigments for wool fabric specimen. The fungal pigments are extracted from the species of Thennomyces, purified and characterized using UV-Vis and FTIR spectra and then used for dyeing. An experiment has been designed using Box- Behnken with three levels and three variables using pH, temperature and time as independent variables and K/S, wash, rub & light fastness and bacterial reduction (%) as dependent variables and the process conditions are optimized. Regression equations have been obtained to analyse color intensity, fastness properties and bacterial reduction and the optimum process parameters are identified. The results show that the optimum concentration of the pigment is 2% on weight of the fabric and the optimum conditions for dyeing are 60° C, 30 min at 3 pH. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study electrically conductive polyester fabrics were prepared by using conductive polyaniline polymer. The conductive fabrics were prepared by in-situ chemical oxidative polymerization of aniline using ammonium persulphate as the oxidant by a process of diffusion polymerization in a mixed bath. These fabrics were characterized by ATR-FTIR, WAXD, SEM, DSC and two-probe conductivity. The evaluation of electromagnetic shielding effectiveness of the polyaniline treated fabrics was carried out using Agilent E5061A/E5062A ENA series RF network analyzer. The structural studies show that the crystalline region of fabric structure is not affected by the polyaniline and the interaction of polyaniline molecules with fabric molecules. The SEM studies reveal a very uniform deposition of polyaniline molecules on the fabrics. The thermal studies show that the PANI-treated fabrics have better thermal stability. The conductivity studies show that the treated fabrics have good electrical conductivity with the resistance value of 5 K ohm/sq. The EMI Shielding tests show that polyaniline treated polyester fabric has the Electromagnetic Interference value of -2.78 dB and which makes it a promising candidate for EMI Shielding and Anti-static discharge matrix for the encapsulation of the micro-electronic devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Woven fabric samples have been developed using composite yarn consisting of copper mono filament and PET filaments for evaluating electromagnetic shielding effectiveness (EMSE) against radiating electromagnetic wave spectrum over a frequency range 2.25 - 2.65 GHz. Coaxial transverse electromagnetic wave mode transmission method equipment has been used for testing in far field condition. It is observed that the weave and thread spacing of fabric samples significantly influence the shielding effectiveness as interpreted from the two way between subject ANOVA design. It is justified that aperture size and contact resistance of composite yarns in fabrics are the critical parameters in determining the shielding effectiveness of textile fabrics. The mechanism of fabric shielding is also discussed in detail using already established shielding theories which would help design fabrics for electromagnetic shielding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study aims to evaluate the commercial potentiality for improving the dye ability of natural extract on silk fabric by using low temperature plasma treatment. The fungal pigments were extracted from the species of thermomyces, purified and characterized using UV-Vis and FTIR spectra and used for dyeing process. The method is to modify the conventional dyeing process using plasma pretreatment by varying the treatment time on silk fabric before dyeing with natural fungal extract and to analyze the parameters like K/S, wash fastness, rubbing fastness, light fastness and bacterial reduction (%). The results showed that the plasma pretreated samples brings better fixation levels, improvement in fastness properties and imparts good antibacterial activity for the dyed silk fabric which was dyed using natural fungal extract at optimum conditions of 600 C, 30 min at a pH of 3. It was also inferred that the plasma treated samples does not showed any influence with increase in the treatment time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper deals with the development of electro-active elastomeric fabric sensor using silver coated polyamide yarn at the centre of the tape along with polyester and rubber yarns and its electrical characterisation for the application towards elbow angle measurement. Box and Behnken 3-variable and 3-level experimental design has been used and 15 different samples are produced. The resistance change in the samples caused by linear extension as well as the angular movement of the elbow is measured. The variables for sensor design have been optimized using gauge factor (Δr/Δ.x) values as dependent variable and the results show that the variables such as number of conductive threads, picks per inch and rubber: polyester thread ratio influence the Δr/Δx value negatively. Different sensor characteristics have also been analysed. The sample with 4 conductive threads, 20 picks/inch and 1:8 polyester : rubber ratio shows a higher gauge factor of 0.583 and has proportional resistance change with length; this sample is therefore chosen to be good among all the 15 samples developed. It is also observed that this sample with higher sensitivity value can be used to measure elbow joint up to 90° angle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Silver nanoparticle -- polyvinyl pyrrotidone (PVP) composite containing 100 ppm of silver has been synthesized in powder form for textile applications, using sono-chemical method comprising sonication and reduction with trisodium citrate followed by spray drying. The synthesized PVP coated silver nanopowder is then characterized by UV-Visible spectra, atomic absorption spectra, transmission electron microscope and energy dispersive analysis of X-rays. The results indicate the presence of silver particle of the size 50-60 nm in the synthesized powder. The silver nanopowder has been applied on cotton and wool to impart antimicrobial efficacy by exhaustion method. The treated cotton fabric shows a clear microbial resistance with 35-40 mm zone of inhibition in the agar diffusion test against Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The treated wool fabric shows 100%, 97% and 99% antimicrobial efficacy in the quantitative AATCC 100 test against the above-mentioned microorganisms respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An alternate value addition for short fine wool was done in this study. Two types of wool-cotton union fabric were produced using two different counts of wool yarns spun from short fine wool as weft and coloured cotton yarns as war,d. The woollen part of the fabrics was cross dyed using 1:2 metal complex dyes to uniform shade followed by finishing with a cationic softener. The performance of finished union fabrics were compared with the 100% wool control fabric to find their suitability as blankets for tropical winter season. The stiffness, linearity of compression (LC), resilience of compression (RC) and air resistance of the grey fabrics were improved by about 30%, 10%, 10% and 40%, respectively, due to better dyeing and finishing. The union fabrics showed 40% to 50% reduced felting shrinkage compared to 100% wool control fabric. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wearable computing devices can easily be defined as those devices, which become the ∅art of the use's persona/space and are controlled operationally and interactionally by the user in such a mannar that they are always accessible1. This developing area of interactive electronic textiles is generating an abundance of literature within the textile industry. Potentially, these specialized textiles will integrate different communications, entertainments, medical and safety devices directly into traditional textile and apparel products. This paper outlines the various developments like integrating electronic devices into textile materials, development of conductive yarns and fibres, chemical conductive coatings and digital printing using conductive ink. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The influence of modified yarn path on spinning triangle and, in turn, on yarn hairiness has been studied using 100% cotton yarns of the counts 25s, 40s, 60s, 70s & 100s, and polyester/cotton blended (70/30) yarns of the counts 30s, 45s & 64s with various left diagonal path offsets in ring spinning. The study has been carried out using DJ5 ring frame model by modifying the bottom roller flute blocks, pressure bar and pneumafil hole accordingly. The yarns have been tested for hairiness, strength, unevenness and breakage and the test results are compared with the various yarns produced by different left diagonal path offsets and normal straight path. It is observed that there is upto 40% reduction in hairiness at 60 mm offset left diagonal path with slight increase in the strength for all the counts produced except 100s. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Medical textiles is one of the most rapidly expanding sectors in the technical textile market. Hosiery and embroidery products with specific structure and with biological and bio mechanical properties significantly represent the bio medical textile which also has high potential in tissue engineering. Biomedical implants are used to aid or replace damaged tissues or organs. These materials are used in repairing the body whether it is wound closure (sutures) or replacement surgery (vascular grafts, artificial ligaments,. etc). Textile bio medical implants refers to the textile materials with bio compatibility, bio stability and better functionality. They are used as implants for replacement of artery, veins, in the heart, artificial nose, ears, breast, meshes for hernia repair, bone joint replacement and dental repairs. This paper presents an overview of textiles as bio medical implants, their types, structure, design and applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This review outlines recent advances in wool finishing, especially comfort finishes like softness, antimicrobial, fragrance and insect repellent finishes. The developments in other important finishes like plasma treatment and pilling resistant finishes for wool have also been covered. The mechanism of finishes is explained based on the changes in chemical and morphological structure of wool. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Antimicrobial and blood repellant finish has been applied to cotton fabrics used for surgical gowns, bed linens and drapes to reduce the surgical site infections. The extract of neem was applied to the fabric for imparting antimicrobial activity by pad-dry-cure method. The neem treated fabric was then imparted blood repellency through two different techniques, namely by treatment with fluoropolymer (3%, 4% and 5% owf) using pad-dry-cure method and by 'sputter deposition of teflon' technique using argon plasma. The antimicrobial activity is found to be higher for teflon deposited fabric than for the fluoropolymer finished fabric. Blood repellency increases with the higher concentration of fluoropolymer. and the highest repellency for the teflon deposited fabric is observed at 80W power and 20 min exposure in the plasma chamber. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Micro electro mechanical systems (MEMS) is an emerging high technology that has proven to be very successful in several industrial applications, particularly in the field of medical, automotive, textile and ink jet printing etc; The technological philosophy is to integrate sensors, actuators and electronics on to. a silicon substrate (polysilicon batch) to form a micromachine of size as small as a square millimeter in a cost effective manner. Such advantages prompted for investigating the potential applications of MEMS in textiles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Antimicrobial finish has been imparted to the cotton fabric using extracts of neem and Mexican daisy by direct application and by microencapsulation using pad-dry-cure method. To enhance the durability of antimicrobial finish to number of washes, the microencapsulation of herbal extracts has been done using phase separation/coacervation. Microcapsules are produced using herbal extracts as core and acacia as wall material. Structure of microcapsules has been evaluated using light microscopy with image analysis technique, the presence of microcapsules by scanning electron microscopy, the antimicrobial efficacy by quantitative method in terms of bacterial reduction, and the wash durability of antimicrobial activity by AATCC 124. It is observed that the microencapsulated herbal extracts possess a very good resistance for microbes even after 15 washes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Various herbal species were screened for their antimicrobial activities by employing preliminary (qualitative) antimicrobial tests. Methanolic extraction procedure was followed for extracting the active substances from herbs. Antimicrobial efficacy was assayed by AATCC (agar diffusion and parallel streak) method and Hohenstein modified challenge test. The neem leaves (Azadirachta indica), prickly chaff flower (Achyranthus aspera), tulsi leaves (Ocimum basilicum) and pomegranate rind (Punica granatum) were found to exhibit antimicrobial activity against the strains of Staphylococcus aureus and E. coil Neem ranked first followed by pomegranate and prickly chaff flower. Despite the negative results of tulsi in the qualitative tests, it showed 73% bacterial reduction in the quantitative challenge test. The treated fabric samples exhibited resistance to degradability as tested by digging soil test. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The influence of yarn path on spinning triangle and, in turn, on yarn hairiness has been studied. The yarns have been produced from cotton (40s Mali-juli and 60s MCU5) and 45s polyester/cotton (Recron/MCU5, 67:33) by varying the yarn path in right and left diagonals by spinning with adjacent spindles and then tested for hairiness, strength, unevenness and breakage. The test results have been compared with the respective conventional straight path yarns. It is observed that there is a 50% reduction in hairiness in the left diagonal path with slight increase in strength. Right diagonal path shows deterioration in spinning efficiency and no improvement in hairiness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new method of measuring drape using a modified drape meter is proposed where the elegance of drape is more effectively observed in the elevation view of a draped fabric specimen. In the new method, apart from the top projection, the elevation projection along warp and weft directions of draped specimen mounted on the drape meter disc is taken using additional light source. The new three-dimensional drape coefficient (3-D DC) calculated from top projection and weft-way elevation projection is capable of differentiating the samples with different drape appearance but same conventional drape coefficient. This 3-D DC has better correlation with most of the drape describing parameters compared to the conventional drape coefficient. Studies with cotton shirting fabrics show that with the increase in picks per inch, the drape coefficient increases, reaches a maximum value and thereafter it decreases. In the case of polyester/cotton blended fabrics, an increasing trend in drape coefficient is observed. Dyeing decreases the value of drape coefficient. Studies also show that the DC % decreases with time and that the sample reaches stabilized condition after 5 min of sample mounting. Seamed fabrics have stabilized drape appearance and DC %. Increase in the number of seams in the fabric increases the fabric stiffness and hence the DC%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents the study which aimed to develop a microbe resistant finishing treatment for cotton and silk fabrics and prolong their use life by safeguarding them against microorganisms. It focuses on the chlorinated bis-phenol called Triclosan, which is a synthetic, non-ionic broad spectrum antimicrobial agent. It examines the effects of triclosan on antibacterial activity, water absorbency properties and on tensile properties.

Proliferation of electronic equipment and wireless systems over the past few decades has increased the vulnerability to electromagnetic interference (EMI). This interaction between electronic systems is undesirable and can lead to malfunctioning in the involved components. Various researches and industrial companies have shown keen interest in providing solutions to overcome this problem. Among the various solutions offered, textile products have caught the attention of researchers owing to their versatility and conformability to different structures. This paper attempts to comprehensively review the application of conductive polymer coated fabrics for the control of electromagnetic radiations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The surgical gowns were originally used to protect patients from post-surgery infection caused by contaminants in the environment. In the recent health care scenario, the function of surgical gowns has become bidirectional. They serve to minimize the cross-infection between patients and health care workers. The health care workers are mainly being exposed to various blood borne pathogens when performing surgeries or post surgeries. The surgical gowns are specifically used to protect the health care workers from being exposed to infectious agent's particularly bloodborne pathogens such as human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), hepatitis B and C virus, which could be acquired by contact between the contaminated body fluids and non-intact skin or mucous membranes. Health care workers in operating rooms, isolation areas, emergency rooms and intensive care units are in absolute and essential necessity of Protective clothing. As a part of personal protection, surgical gowns are used as protective equipment, widely in healthcare facilities. Surgical gowns can be constructed by either single-use materials or reusable materials. Each of these has their own advantages and disadvantages. Woven reusable surgical gowns can be made of tightly woven all-cotton muslin, blended sheeting, polyester sheeting and composite materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this research, 36s count cotton yarn with S and Z twist is produced and 7 types of plain woven fabrics were produced by changing the arrangement of warp and weft combination of S and Z twist yarns in the fabric to study the effect of twist direction and relaxation on dimensional stability. This study shows that the 'Z' warp and 'S' weft yarn combination gives lower shrinkage percentage than other combinations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The problem of noise pollution is increasing day by day around the world. Increased application of different mechanical and electrical equipment in the domestic and industrial sectors has led to higher noise level. The common sound-absorptive materials are made from synthetic fibers that can be hazardous to human health and the environment, and quite expensive. In this paper the market potential of acoustic products and various natural fibrous structures for acoustic insulation is discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]