Viscose Fabric Functionalized with Copper and Copper Alginate Treatment Toward Antibacterial and UV Blocking Properties

Viscose fabrics were modified with alginate and doped with copper ions, to investigate the effect of copper doping on their antibacterial and UV blocking properties. The modified fabrics were characterized using FTIR, UV spectroscopy, SEM and chromatometric analysis and their copper uptake properties were investigated. The antibacterial effect of the treatments was evaluated before and after repeated washings (up to 50 cycles). The resulting composite materials showed excellent antibacterial properties with up to 100 % reduction of bacteria, even from very low copper content, while alginate/copper treatment increased the UV radiation protection index by 261 %, offering a composite fabric with improved performance.