Preparation and Characterization of Antibacterial Nylon 6 Fiber

Abstract

Due to its excellent mechanical property, dye ability and skin affinity, PA6 has been widely used in apparel, home textiles, military products, etc. However, PA6 fiber is easy to breed bacteria and corroded by bacteria in humid environment. One of development tendency of functional PA6 fiber is to design and develop nylon 6 fiber with excellent antibacterial properties, which is also the research target of this paper. In the present investigation, ZnO antibacterial agent was prepared through sol-gel method, and antibacterial masterbatch was acquired via blending antibacterial agent with PA6 using a twin-screw, then antibacterial PA6 fiber was obtained through melt spinning. The thermal properties, crystallization property of antibacterial PA6 masterbatch were discussed. The effect of drawing ratio on fiber strength, elongation of break, orientation and crystallization was also investigated. The antibacterial properties of antibacterial agent and antibacterial PA6 fiber was analyzed by agar diffusion method. The results of Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) suggests that the antibacterial agent causes the rise of crystallization temperature and crystallization rate. X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) and mechanical testing results reveal that the higher drawing ratio leads to higher orientation and strength of PA6 fiber, lower elongation at break. The addition of antibacterial agent increases the degree of orientation and crystallization, reduces the strength of fiber and tends to form α crystalline in PA6 fiber. Antibacterial tests show that antibacterial PA6 fiber has a good antibacterial performance against Staphylococcus aureus.