Simultaneous low‐salt dyeing and anti‐bacterial finishing of cotton fabric with reactive dye and N‐halamine

A reactive dye, Novacron Deep Orange S-4R, and an anti-bacterial precursor, 4-(4-(2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-4-piperidinol)-6-chloro-1,3,5-triazinylamino)-benzenesulphonate, both of which are monohalogenated-s-triazine-based compounds, were chosen for the simultaneous dyeing and anti-bacterial finishing of cotton fabric. To effectively reduce the emissions of pollutants and the dosage of sodium sulphate added during dyeing and finishing, a cationisation reagent, 2,3-epoxypropyltrimethylammonium chloride, was used to modify cotton fabric before dyeing and finishing. The cationised cotton fabrics obtained 0.18% active chlorine loadings and good dye depth after the simultaneous dyeing and finishing process with low addition of sodium sulphate. The chlorinated fabrics inactivated all inoculated Staphylococcus aureus (Gram-positive) and Escherichia coli (Gram-negative) within 10 minutes of contact. The treated cotton fabric maintained high breaking strength as well as good washing stability.