Thermo-physiological Comfort Properties of Neem Herbal Extract Finished Synthetic Fabrics

Abstract

In this study, an attempt has been made to explore the possibilities of using the natural medicinal herbs for imparting the thermo-physiological comfort properties on textile materials for the first time. Herb, i.e., the well-known neem have been chosen and subjected to extraction for the preparation of finishing solution. The finishes were applied on 100% polyester and 50/50 polyester/acrylic-blended synthetic fabrics. The finished fabrics were tested for thermo-physiological comfort properties such as wetting, wicking, water vapor permeability, air permeability, and thermal conductivity. It has been found that the treatment has resulted in the improvement in most of these properties with significant increase in moisture properties, little reduction in thermal conductivity, and a slight compromise decrease in air permeability. Washing studies revealed good durability of these finishes on the fabrics.