Graft Polymerization Induced Enhanced Dyeing Performance and Antibacterial Properties of Kosa Silk

Surface modification of Kosa silk was conducted to enhance its dye ability along with introduction of antimicrobial activity. The modification was achieved through graft copolymerization of two quaternary ammonium salts namely [2-(Methacryloxy)ethyl] trimethylammonium chloride (MAETC) and vinyl benzyl trimethyl ammonium chloride (VBT) using ceric ammonium nitrate (CAN) nitric acid redox combination. Effect of various experimental variables such as dye concentration, pH, contact time duration, and temperature were investigated. The grafted Kosa silk fabric was then subjected to exhaust dyeing with Acid Blue 25. The color properties of the dyed fabric were analyzed in terms of CIE L*, a*, and b* values (where L represents the difference in lightness/darkness, a denotes the difference in redness/greenness, and b refers to the difference in yellowness/blueness) and K/S values. The antimicrobial activity of the modified silk was evaluated using the Agar-Well Diffusion method against gram negative (Escherichia coli) and gram positive (Staphylococcus aureus) bacterial strains.