Preparation and characterization of sustainable plant-based blended woven fabric

This study explores the potential of utilizing natural fibers, including flax, hemp, banana, jute, and sisal, as alternatives to cotton in textile manufacturing as no one has compared the blends of these fibers with cotton under identical conditions. The study aims to address environmental issues in cotton cultivation by using two blend ratios (80:20 and 60:40) of cotton and alternative natural fibers to create yarns and woven fabrics. The fabrics were then dyed and treated with softener and bio polish to assess how these treatments affect mechanical and thermphysiological comfort properties of the fabrics. The results indicated that higher cotton blends exhibited increased tensile and tear strength, with the cotton/sisal blend achieving a maximum tensile strength of 289 N, while the cotton/flax blend displayed the highest tear strength at 11.5 N. Softener and biopolish treatments improved the Relative Hand Value (RHV) by 20% and 30%, respectively. Fabric composition predominantly influences drape properties and resilience scores, with the cotton/banana blend showing drape values and the cotton/flax blend demonstrating resilience scores that are closer to those of pure cotton than other blends. Additionally, the fabric composition improved the air permeability of the samples, with the cotton/banana blend showing the greatest increase, reaching 483 mm/s. The cotton/jute blend exhibited the highest water vapor permeability at 98, while the cotton/sisal and cotton/hemp blends demonstrated moisture management properties with values of 0.76.