Utilization of plant extract as antimicrobial finish for healthcare textiles

Textile materials are good media for the growth of the microorganisms. The consumers these days are increasingly being aware of the hygienic lifestyle and there is a necessity of development of a wide range of textile products finished with antimicrobial properties. Thus an innovative approach was made to utilize the plant sources as ecofriendly and renewable source for production of microbial resistant fabric. The developed environment-friendly finish prevents the growth of bacteria. It also prevents garments from unpleasant odour. For this the chemical nature of Mousambi and Harshingar leaf extracts was determined and extraction of active substances from the leaves was done using ethanol, methanol and aqueous medium. The herbal extracts were applied on 100 per cent cotton fabric with and without the use of cross linking agent. Eleven concentrations of both the plant extracts were used to study the reduction in bacterial colonies on the fabric. The antimicrobial activity of the finished fabric was assessed using quantitative and qualitative methods against bacteria and fungi that normally exist in the textile environment. The finished cotton fabrics showed the maximum bacterial reduction percentage of 74.7 for Harshingar against Gram positive and 71.2 for Mousambi against Gram negative bacteria. With the increase in concentration of the plant extract a decrease in turbidity was noticed.