Construction of sustainable and multifunctional polyester fabrics via an efficiently and eco-friendly spray-drying...

Polyester fabric (PET fabric) has aroused widespread attention from people thanks to the advantages of smooth feel, easy washing, quick-drying, high strength, and chemical resistance. However, PET fabric's wide application has been limited by its hydrophobicity, poor resistance to bacterial contamination, and static accumulation. Herein, a super-hydrophilic PET fabric was achieved via a spray-drying layer-by-layer self-assembly method for comfortable garment manufacturing. The as-prepared PET fabric exhibited good superhydrophilicity, excellent antistatic property, and durable antibacterial performance. Moreover, the water contact angle of the treated fabric decreased to 0° from 121° of the original PET fabric, and the capillary height also increased from 7.1 cm to 21.4 cm. Besides, the treated fabric showed a durable antibacterial rate of 99.5% against both Escherichia coli (E. coli) and Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) after ten standard washing cycles. The prepared fabric was also identified with good cytocompatibility, making it a good material for garments in real life. Promisingly, this novel approach can be easily integrated into the finishing of textiles and is expected to be applied to various substrates with superhydrophilic and antibacterial properties.