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Updated: Aug 11, 2026

Fabricating Cotton Analytical Devices
Published on: August 30, 2016
Enzymes and chelating agent in cotton pretreatment
E Csiszár1, A Losonczi, G Szakács
1Budapest University of Technology and Economics, PO Box 91, H-1521, Budapest, Hungary. emi.oct@chem.bme.hu
Abstract:
Desized cotton fabric and cotton seed-coat fragments (impurities) have been treated with commercial cellulase (Celluclast 1.5 L), hemicellulase-pectinase (Viscozyme 120 L) and xylanase (Pulpzyme HC) enzymes. Seed-coat fragments hydrolyzed much faster than the cotton fabric itself. This relative difference in hydrolysis rates makes possible a direct enzymatic removal of seed-coat fragments from desized cotton fabric. Addition of chelating agents such as ethylenediamine-tetra-acetic acid (EDTA) markedly enhanced the directed enzyme action. Pretreatments carried out in acidic solution at pH 5 increased the lightness of seed-coat fragments, contrary to the samples treated in neutral medium at pH 7. Alkaline scouring resulted in darker seed-coat fragments except for the samples pretreated with Pulpzyme HC plus EDTA. This effect is similar to that observed in the biobleaching process in pulp and paper industry.
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