Carbon Dioxide Laser as a Sustainable Method for Producing a Pattern on Denim Fabric: Evaluation of Colour and Durability

Laser treatment of denim fabrics was demonstrated as one of the methods of producing distressed effects and is continuing to attract textile and fashion designers to develop bespoke designs that appeal to all age groups. Two dark shaded indigo-dyed 100% cotton twill fabric with varying weights representing various garment applications were laser treated using a commercially available pulsed CO2 laser of wavelength 10.62�m. Pulses per inch, which is the degree of closeness of laser irradiation, was maintained at 300 and 400 PPI. Treated denim fabrics were evaluated for tensile strength, colour measurements, including colour hue (H), saturation (S), brightness (B), reflectance, K/S (colour yield), CIE L* a* b*, fabric thickness and colourfastness after wash. Results indicated that colour contrast of denim fabric enhanced with the increase in grayscale (tone density) for both the LW (lightweight) and HW (heavyweight) fabrics, mainly at lower laser speed (80%) and higher laser power (40%). At higher grayscale (30% GS), surface fibers charred due to laser and the oxidation of cellulose occurred, causing a distinct yellow tone compared to pristine denim. Fabric tensile strength was affected as grayscale and laser parameters increased, the variation from pristine denim for LW fabric was 40 - 45% at 30% GS, whilst for HW fabric, variation was 25-30%. Colourfastness tests revealed limited colour staining, and it removed charred fibers showing a distinct tone change. This research recommends a combination of fabric and laser parameters to produce patterns without affecting the overall quality of the fabric

The environmental impact of end-of-life PVC flex banners and its potential upcycling opportunities

PVC is used as a raw material for many products, especially in the production of flex banners. PVC flex banners used for advertising or marketing purposes have a short-term use [average up to 45 days]. PVC flex banners are usually annihilated, piled in landfills, incinerated, or buried under the soil, thus causing severe damage to the environment. This systematic literature review highlights the research carried out on this topic over the last two decades and discusses industry practices in producing PVC flex banners, the environmental impact of PVC flex banners due to annihilation, and reuse and recycling methods for PVC flex banners. One of these opportunities is upcycling, which is an important part of the reuse strategy. These flex banners can be reused in the fashion industry as upcycled products [high-value functional and aesthetic products] and accessories through zero-waste fashion production processes [especially used in pattern designing and cutting stages]. These include primarily bags and luggage, apparel, footwear, worker uniforms, and accessory upcycle products. Based on findings from the systematic review, it recommends a conceptual framework that emphasises the impact of end-of-life PVC flex banners and offers ways for reuse that avoid piling in landfills, incineration, and burying these wastes under the soil, reducing the impact on the environment. The studies suggesting the production of upcycling products from end-of-life PVC flex banners by the zero-waste fashion production process have not been sufficiently researched and reported, and they are a novel method of reusing resources

Investigation of bark cloth for its surface texture and durability for apparel applications

Ugandan bark cloth has been recognised by UNESCO as a masterpiece of the ‘Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity’, to protect the knowledge, traditions and livelihoods associated with its production. Bark cloth is a non-woven, fibrous textile that has been produced from the wild fig or mutuba tree (Ficus natalensis) by the Baganda people of southern Uganda for hundreds of years. A typical bark cloth has a rich, terracotta colour and is worn by kings and chiefs during coronations, religious ceremonies and cultural gatherings, as well as for funeral shrouds. This research is part of a project that explores the properties and significance of bark cloth from cultural, ethical, technical and aesthetic perspectives to determine its feasibility as a sustainable fashion textile. It will highlight the potential of bark cloth specifically in relation to the characteristics of luxury fashion (craftsmanship, quality, rarity, heritage and story-telling), through using techniques that include embroidery, appliqué, gilding, laser cutting, natural dyeing and fusing. In addition, the bark cloth has been investigated for its practical suitability for apparel end use. Various fabric tests have been carried out to investigate its performance including fabric drape, stiffness, surface morphology and tearing strength. The material was also subjected to laser etching to implement design patterns. The bark cloth was subjected to CO2 laser etching and sublimation printing to incorporate surface patterns. Based on the trials, an optimum set of parameters were identified to use laser and sublimation printing. As the material is stiff when it is heat-pressed and to facilitate the garment making process the bark cloth was fused with different types of knitted and woven fusible linings, and its drape and strength were also tested. A basic test garment (size 12 female full-sleeve top) was developed with the fused bark cloth that offered good drape and its shape and fit were evaluated on a mannequin. Outcomes indicated that bark cloth could be satisfactorily developed into outer garments with specific treatment. It is anticipated that this research will indirectly create demand for bark cloth from Uganda and help to support the artisans involved in the production of sustainable bark cloth

Effective Prostate Cancer Detection using Enhanced Particle Swarm Optimization Algorithm with Random Forest on the Microarray Data

Prostate Cancer (PC) is the leading cause of mortality among males, therefore an effective system is required for identifying the sensitive bio-markers for early recognition. The objective of the research is to find the potential bio-markers for characterizing the dissimilar types of PC. In this article, the PC-related genes are acquired from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database. Then, gene selection is accomplished using enhanced Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) to select the active genes, which are related to the PC. In the enhanced PSO algorithm, the interval-newton approach is included to keep the search space adaptive by varying the swarm diversity that helps to perform the local search significantly. The selected active genes are fed to the random forest classifier for the classification of PC (high and low-risk). As seen in the experimental investigation, the proposed model achieved an overall classification accuracy of 96.71%, which is better compared to the traditional models like naïve Bayes, support vector machine and neural network

Environmentally friendly and sustainable bark cloth for garment applications: Evaluation of fabric properties and apparel development

Ugandan bark cloth has been recognised by UNESCO as a masterpiece of the ‘Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity’, to protect the knowledge, traditions and livelihoods associated with its production. Bark cloth is a non-woven, fibrous textile that has been produced from the wild fig or mutuba tree (Ficus natalensis) by the Baganda people of southern Uganda for hundreds of years. A typical bark cloth has a rich, terracotta colour and is worn by kings and chiefs during coronations, religious ceremonies and cultural gatherings, as well as for funeral shrouds. Due to the growing awareness and the need to reduce the environmental impact of textiles, there is a pressing rationale to use natural materials or fibres in fashion clothing in recent years as designers and practitioners embrace environmentally sustainable raw materials and promote traditional craftsmanship. Various properties and significance of bark cloth from cultural, ethical, technical and aesthetic perspectives to determine its feasibility as a sustainable fashion textile was explored. The potential of bark cloth specifically in relation to the characteristics of luxury fashion (craftsmanship, quality, rarity, heritage and storytelling), through using techniques that include embroidery, appliqué, gilding, laser cutting, natural dyeing and fusing is highlighted. The bark cloth was investigated for its practical suitability for apparel end use. Various fabric tests were conducted to determine its performance including fabric drape, stiffness, surface morphology, and tearing strength. The bark cloth was subjected to CO2 laser etching and sublimation printing to incorporate surface patterns and attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy [ATR-FTIR] was used to monitor the loss of fibres. Based on the trials, an optimum set of parameters were identified to use laser and sublimation printing. Raw bark cloth was stiff when heat-pressed, so it was fused with various fusible interfacing fabrics [A,B, and C] to enhance drape, texture, handle and strength. Results indicated that bark cloth when fused with woven interfacing [C] improved its strength [warp direction aligned with fabric grain] by approximately six times [330 N] the strength of bark cloth [57 N]. Fabric drape increased marginally [1.0–3.0%] when fusing with the interfacing, however it offered better handle when making the garment. A basic test garment (size 12 female full-sleeve top) was developed with the fused bark cloth that offered good drape and its shape and fit were evaluated on a mannequin. Outcomes indicated that bark cloth could be satisfactorily developed into outer garments with specific treatment

Consumer Perception of Environmentally Friendly Antimicrobial Textiles: a case study from India

The recent global pandemic and increasing awareness of hygiene led to changes in consumers’ behaviour towards their health and wellbeing. Owing to growing consumers’ knowledge on the environmental impact of textiles, especially those who are health conscious and living in cities, it becomes vital to explore their perception towards antimicrobial textiles. This study investigated the consumer perception and specific requirement of sustainable antimicrobial textiles. A cross-sectional questionnaire survey was conducted online and collated from 306 participants (Female 49.3%; Male 50.6%) of five main cities in India including Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Bengaluru, and Chennai. The majority of participants were healthcare workers and academics with an average age of 32 ± 7 (6.6 standard deviation). The questionnaire had high internal consistency and reliability, and the factor analysis indicated 15 items relating to four attributes that were relevant to extract information from the community on environment-friendly antimicrobial textile. The findings show that consumer’s awareness of rural health, hygiene and environmental issues could influence the purchase of sustainable antimicrobial textiles made of organic fibres with herbal finish. Consumers believe that by purchasing a sustainable product they contribute towards society. This is the first study to report on consumers’ preferences for sustainable antimicrobial textiles and contributes to the literature by developing a scale with high reliability that is community-relevant, consumer centered, and product-specific. This research underscores the importance of consumers’ awareness, knowledge, and preference of environmentally friendly antimicrobial hygiene textiles. The outcomes will benefit various stakeholders [healthcare workers, industry, and community] in promoting environmental-friendly and sustainable products among consumers in India

Built in refuge for the management of Pink Bollworm, Pectinophora gossypiella Saunders (Gelichidae: Lepidoptera) in Bt cotton

Field experiment was conducted at the Main Agricultural Research Station, University of Agricultural Sciences, Raichur during 2012-13 to identify and evaluate the suitable refuge strategy systems for pink bollworm resistance management in Bt cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) cultivation. The experiment was laid out in randomized complete block design with nine refuge systems : 0 % N-Bt (BIR), 5 % N-Bt (BIR), 10 % N-Bt (BIR), 15 % N-Bt (BIR), 20% N-Bt perimeter refuge, 100% Non Bt, 50% Non Bt, 10% structured refuge and 20% structured refuge as treatments with three replications in replacement series. Significantly lowest incidence (3.55 larvae/plant) and number of bolls with exit holes (11.22) due to pink bollworm was recorded in 0% BIR (41.25 q/ha) followed by 5 % N-Bt (BIR) with yield of 38.74 q/ha and this was on par with 10 % N-Bt (BIR) with yield of 37.79 is next best refuge systems with Bt cotton for higher production and greater economic benefits

A finite element model for predicting impact-induced damage to a skin simulant

A finite element model was developed for assessing the efficacy of rugby body padding in reducing the risk of sustaining cuts and abrasions. The model was developed to predict the onset of damage to a soft tissue simulant from concentrated impact loading (i.e., stud impact) and compared against a corresponding experiment. The damage modelling techniques involved defining an element deletion criterion, whereby those on the surface of the surrogate were deleted if their maximum principal stress reached a predefined value. Candidate maximum principal stress values for element deletion criteria were identified independently from puncture test simulations on the soft tissue simulant. Experimental impacts with a stud were carried out at three energies (2, 4 and 6 J), at three angular orientations (0°, 15° and 30°) and compared to corresponding simulations. Suitable maximum principal stress values for element deletion criteria settings were first identified for the 4 J impact, selecting the candidates that best matched the experimental results. The same element deletion settings were then applied in simulations at 2 and 6 J and the validity of the model was further assessed (difference < 15% for the force at tear and < 30% for time to tear). The damage modelling techniques presented here could be applied to other skin simulants to assess the onset of skin injuries and the ability of padding to prevent them