Applying the sol-gel method to the deposition of nanocoats on textiles to improve their abrasion resistance

The thin-coat finishing of textiles carried out by the solgel methods gain greater and greater importance owing to their suitability for the versatile functionalization of textiles to impart to them properties being difficult and even impossible to obtain with the use of conventional finishing methods. This article presents the test results of the thin-coat protective finishing of cotton fabrics against abrasion. This treatment consists in depositing hybrid SiO2*/Al2O3 sols synthesized from two precursors: (3-glycidoxypropyl)trimethoxy-silane and aluminum isopropoxide on fiber/fabric surface. The abrasion resistance of the fabric treated by the solgel method has been increased by about five times according to Martindale test and this effect is resistant to prolonged laundering. (C) 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2012