This paper presents the results of x-ray diffraction of a cellulose fabric treated with oils extracted from the seed of Jatropha curcas; the oils were extracted with hexane under reflux while the fabric was purified by scouring, bleaching and mercerization to remove dirt and coloring matter in order to make it suitable for esterification. Apart from the controlled sample which was un-esterified, other samples of the same fabric were treated with different volume and concentration of the oil under the same temperature. The x-ray diffraction analysis carried out on all samples showed that while the control sample had a sharp single peak at 24.033° all the esterified samples showed broad split Original Research Article 3 of oil. Crystallinity was observed to reduce from 65% in the control to about 63% for esterified fabrics samples and lastly, crystallite size reduced from 9.9 nm to between 5.3 nm to 7.7 nm. The observed structural modifications in treated fabric may have direct influence on the physical, mechanical properties as well as dye-ability of the treated samples. The result of water Imbibition also revealed structural modification as there was a decrease in the amount of water imbibed by esterified fabric, indicating a reduction in the number of OH groups in the new cellulose derivative as revealed in the x-ray analysis. Hence the esterified fabric will be less susceptible to microbial attack during storage.

Cellulose fabrics were esterified by using varying volume of Balanites aegyptiaca seed oil. X-ray diffraction analysis was carried on the esterified fabrics and unesterified fabric. The crystallographs of all esterified fabrics gave almost the same profile different from that of control fabric. The control fabric gave a sharp single peak at 24.033º diffractometer angle. Esterified fabrics gave a slightly broad split peaks at lower diffractometer angles which ranged from 20.080 -22.690º, suggesting that there was structural modification of cellulose. The inter-atomic distance (d-spacing) for control fabric was 3.7027 Å. There was increase in d-spacing which ranged from 3.9192 -4.4216 Å for esterified fabric. The peak width increased from 1.5º (control) to range of 1.6 -2.8º (esterified) fabrics. The peaks intensity increased from 5489 (control) to highest value (7798) for 30 cm 3 of oil esterified fabric. The crystallite size reduced from 9.9 nm (control) to a maximum value (9.2 nm) for CSIJ, 19(2): 1-11, 2017; Article no.CSIJ.32686 2 40 cm 3 and to minimum value (5.3 nm) for 10 cm 3 oil esterified fabrics. The percentage crystallinity reduced from 65% (control) to a range of 62-63% for esterified fabrics. From the results obtained, it can be concluded that reduction in crystallite size, increase in d-spacing, intensity and peak width were due to the presence of a bulky ester group in the cellulose chain; this may also have led to the observed decrease in percentage crystallinity of the esterified fabrics. This structural modification is expected to have direct consequences on the physical and mechanical properties as well as the dyeing properties of the esterified fabrics. Original Research Article

This paper presents the results of some physicochemical properties of cellulosic fabric obtained by esterification using 50 cm3 of oil extracted from the seed of Balanites aegyptiaca. The oil was extracted under reflux with hexane which gave 40% yield and 0.22% moisture content. The identified cellulosic materials 10 cm and 21 cm x 2.5 cm) were subjected to purification process of scouring, bleaching and mercerization to obtain cleaner, whiter and stronger fabric that could withstand esterification treatment. The yarn crimp was 25% and 15% for warp and weft direction respectively, while the grey fabric gave the lowest of 5% and 8% for warp and weft directions. The linear density (45 tex) was recorded for the esterified fabric compared to 37 tex for the grey fabric along warp direction. The fabric sett increased from 24 thd/cm for grey to 27 thd/cm for esterified along warp direction and 16 thd/cm to 23 thd/cm along weft direction. There was an obvious reduction in shrinkage from 31 for mercerized fabric to 28 along warp direction after esterification and 21 to 19 along weft direction. The tensile parameter was 262.60 N and 166.24 N with extension of 13.92 mm and 12.23 mm along warp and weft directions respectively while the grey fabric recorded 223.87 N and 109.39 N with extensions of 3.64 mm and 3.56 mm in warp and weft direction respectively. There was a remarkable improvement in the dry and wet crease recovery angles after esterification (105º dry and 65º wet, 102º dry and 59º wet) along warp and weft direction respectively. The grey fabric gave the lowest crease recovery (50º dry and 37º wet, 45º dry and 35º wet) along warp and weft directions respectively. The esterified fabric recorded lower water absorption. The improvements in the investigated properties may be due to dimensional stability, flexibility and fineness due to esterification. This research is commendable because biodegradable organic seed oil is used to modify the physicochemical properties of cellulosic fabric for the first time. These incredible effects of the seed oil on cellulose is an immense contribution to knowledge, hence the oil is recommended for replacement of the present day toxic chemicals used in textile finishing of cellulosic fabrics.

This paper presents the results of the assessment of some physicochemical properties of cellulosic fabric esterified using varying volume of Jatropha curcas seed oil. The oil was extracted using Soxhlet apparatus under reflux with hexane as solvent. The percentage yield and moisture content was 47.25% and 0.56% respectively. The fabric (10 cm x 10 cm and 21 cm x 2.5 cm) was identified to be cellulose; it was subjected to purification processes before esterification. The purification processes are scouring, bleaching and mercerization, after which the fabrics were esterified using 10 cm3 through 60 cm3 of oil. The results of esterification gave improvement in dry and wet crease recovery angles, and yarn twist. The highest values of dry crease (130º warp and 122º weft), wet crease (74º warp and 68º weft) and yarn twist (25 TPI warp and 23 TPI weft) were obtained with 50 cm3 of oil. The unesterified (control) fabric recorded lower values of dry crease recovery angles (50º warp and 45º weft), wet crease (37º warp and 35º weft) and yarn twist (14 TPI warp and 12 TPI weft). These revealed that esterification is the reason for the observed improvements and was generally better in warp direction than in weft direction. This may be attributed to the difference in the fabric construction. There was increase in bending properties but did not optimize within the volume of oil used. The air permeability and percentage water imbibition was reduced compared to the control fabric; revealing a structural modification and the formation of a hydrophobic ester bond. This may be an indication that the esterified fabric will be more resistant to the formation of mildew during storage. Hence the seed oil of Jatropha curcas is recommended for easy care finish in textile industries.