Durable multifunctional cotton fabric with superior biocidal efficacy and flame retardancy based on an ammonium phosphate N-halamine

Abstract

Multifunctional textiles have become the mainstreams along with development of textile industry and the increased need of public. But a facile fabrication method with well-balance of multiple functions is still a challenge. In this work, an ammonium salt of tris(methylphosphonate)aminomethane (TAMPU), which can directly react with cellulose molecules and transform to N-halamine antibacterial structure, was easily synthesized and used to achieve multifunctional cotton fabric. As a result, the modified cotton fabric of 15.8 % weight gain exhibited excellent fire resistance with LOI value of 33.8 % and self-extinguishing behavior. Due to the good char-forming capacity of TAMPU, strong heat suppression was achieved and the peak of heat release rate (PHRR) and total heat release (THR) were decreased by 87.6 % and 60.8 %, respectively. Besides, the modified samples presented outstanding bactericidal effects, and all of S. aureus and E. coli could be inactivated within 5 min without dissolution phenomenon. Furthermore, the TAMPU-modified cotton fabric owned good washing durability and LOI value was remained at 29.8 % after 50 washing cycles. This TAMPU multifunctional modification had slight influence on the mechanical property and air permeability of cotton fabric. Thus, this work provides a convenient and friendly way to fabricate multifunctional flame-retardant and antibacterial cotton fabric.