Benzothiazole-pyridone and benzothiazole-pyrazole clubbed emissive azo dyes and dyeing application on polyester fabric: UPF, biological, photophysical and fastness properties with correlative computational assessments.

Positional isomers of benzothiazole-pyridone and benzothiazole-pyrazole containing disperse azo dyes are reported. These heterocyclic azo dyes are decorated with 'separate ESIPT core' and show emission in seven solvents of different polarity. After application on polyester fabric, "very good to excellent" light and washing fastness properties were observed. Thermal stability of 'dyed fabric' was analysed by sublimation fastness test- and found 'very good to excellent' ratings at 210 °C. Ultraviolet Protection Factor (UPF) analysis of four 'dyed fabric' indicates the blocking 96–97% of UV radiation. Dyes were found effective on gram positive and negative bacteria by agar diffusion method and all the 'dyed fabrics' also showed more than 92% or 94% reduction of S. aureus or K. pneumoniae respectively by 'AATCC 100' method. Structures of the dyes were optimized using Density Functional Theory (DFT) to deduce stable tautomeric form. Calculated HOMO-LUMO gap is then compared with antibacterial activities. Electrophilicity index and lightfastness property were also compared and found to have very good correlation. Unlabelled Image • Emissive azo disperse dyes having separate ESIPT-benzothiazole core • Ultraviolet Protecting Factor (UPF) on polyester • Antibacterial studies by agar gel diffusion and AATCC 147, AATCC 100 • Electrophilicity index HOMO-LUMO gap compared with antibacterial activity [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]