Development of advanced personal protective equipment fabrics for protection against slashes and pathogenic bacteria: Part 2: Development of antimicrobial hygiene garments and their characterization

Knife is the most commonly used single weapon in the UK and studies reveal that majority of the knife inflicted wounds were slash type that could be disfiguring or life threatening. Currently available stab resistant armours do not protect the arms, neck and face as they are rigid to be worn comfortably for everyday use. The main objectives of this research programme are; a) to develop and characterise a novel cut resistant and slash proof material that is lightweight, comfortable and efficient; and b) to integrate barrier properties in such garments which would incorporate suitable antimicrobial and other suitable chemicals to provide protection against a range of micro organisms. The design and development of novel slash proof materials for the police, armed forces, children and the public, that is lightweight, comfortable and efficient was discussed in Part 1 of this series. This part discusses the application and study of antimicrobial properties on this novel two-layered weft knitted slash resistant fabric that has only 13.6% of its fibres effectively available for incorporation of antibacterial agents. The anti-bacterial formulation was applied at different concentrations onto the fabric using pad-dry-cure method. Antimicrobial properties of the treated fabrics were evaluated using modified AATCC Test method 147-1998 against common pathogenic bacteria, Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli. It was found that the formulation with 10% concentration showed optimum antimicrobial property with good washing fastness. The durability of the antimicrobial agents were evaluated, both with and without cross-linking agents, for up to 10 washes and better washing fastness was achieved with a cross-linking agent on the face knitted with the composite WF 528 yarn