Cotton pigment printing and characterization from post-consumer lemon peel pectin binder

Abstract

The study explores the use of pectin from lemon peel for pigment printing cotton fabric. The optimal extraction conditions were 95°C, 90 min, 1:40 MLR, and pH 2. The extracted pectin was light yellow, with a moisture content of 13.4%, volatile compound content of 82.3%, total ash content of 3.1%, fixed carbon content of 14.6%, and a pH of 3.5. The thermal stability of the pectin binder was determined to be 230°C. The study also found that pectin cross-linking was achieved through continuous extrusion using 1% citric acid and 0.3% AgNO3. The formulated pectin binder was found to improve textile pigment printing quality and performance. The rheological properties of the pectin-based and commercial binder pastes were evaluated, showing that the pectin-based binder can produce fine designs with shear thinning but retain consistency when applied force is released, resulting in defined edges in prints. The study suggests that pectin-based formulations can be used as an optional binder to commercial binders in textile pigment printing.