Incorporation of probiotics on textile surface by sol–gel coating

Development of biocide-based antimicrobial textiles is proving to be a concern for the economy, and more evidently, for the environment and health. On the contrary, probiotic (beneficial bacteria) can replace these traditional biocides in order to overcome the toxicity and resistance problems. This paper elaborates an adapted sol–gel coating process to embed such beneficial spores on the polyester woven surface, and their viability is studied along with the characterization of the physical properties of the coated fabric. The results illustrate successful incorporation of the beneficial spores with an adequate number of living organisms (even after repeated washing cycles), sufficient tensile strength, and good abrasion resistance properties with the opportunity to improve surface wettability maintaining sufficient adhesion between the fibre and the coated layer.