Surface and Structural Damage to PLA Fibres during Textile Pretreatments

PLA knitted fabric was treated with sodium carbonate in the presence of non-ionic detergent at various concentrations and temperatures in a short liquor bath. The scoured fabric was subsequently treated with industrially important bleaching agents such as hydrogen peroxide, sodium chlorite and sodium hypochlorite at various levels of concentration and pH. The bleached PLA fabric was then evaluated in terms of surface and bulk properties. The structural damage was assessed in terms of tensile strength, while the surface morphology was investigated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The surface chemistry of PLA was studied using infra-red (IR) and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopies (XPS). The alkaline-oxidative conditions were deleterious to the integrity of PLA polymer at high temperature, while at low temperature there was a little damage. The acidic-oxidative conditions did not appreciably affect bulk or surface properties even at high temperature.