Surface Modification of Cellulose Acetate with Cutinase and ...

Surface Modification of Synthetic Fibres - Introduction
Fibre surface modification has been one of the main areas of research in the
development of functional fibres. In addition to research in developing/synthesizing
new fibre forming polymers with specialized properties, surface modification offers
many new opportunities. Properties of fibres such as anti-microbial, anti-odor, anti-
fungal, anti-static, wicking, soil resistance, adhesion, and biocompatibility are among
fibre function surface properties.
There are various techniques available for surface modification including hot and cold
plasma irradiation (Cioffi et al., 2003; Xu and Liu, 2003), enzymatic treatment (Silva et
al., 2005; Vertommen et al., 2005; Yoon et al., 2002; Battistel et al., 2000; Tauber et
al., 2000), chemical finish (Cai et al., 2001) and metal vapor deposition (Jeon et al.,
2008). Among various surface modification techniques strong alkaline treatments can
improve hydrophilicity and chemical reactivity of synthetic fibers but the treatment
extension is hard to control, leading to unacceptable levels of strength loss.
Enzyme treatment techniques are attractive to implement due to ecological and
economic reasons however, the application of enzymes in textile processes often
requires properties or performances not found in enzymes isolated from natural sources.
Molecular biotechnology can be used to introduce desired changes in catalytic activity,
thermal stability and molecular recognition behaviour of enzymes. The following
subchapters describe the work developed in the scope of this thesis aiming at the
optimization of cutinase activity for the surface modification of synthetic fibres
polyethilene therephthalate, polyamide and cellulose acetate.
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