The coloration of human hair keratin
fibers has long involved the
oxidative coupling of primarily aromatic amines and phenols inside
the fibers with the aid of harsh agents such as H2O2 and NH4OH. Further, the traditional process has
exposed millions of consumers and their hairstylists to toxic substances
such as skin sensitizers. While alternative hair dyeing processes
have been explored, they fail to be competitive with the traditional
method, for reasons including impracticality and limited colors achievable.
In the present study, we developed an approach to imparting color
to human hair fibers that involves entrapping colorants inside hair
fibers by forming chelated monoazo dyes in situ.
Dyes employed were based on monoarylide, arylazopyrazolone, and arylazonaphthol
families, which display yellow, orange, and magenta colors on dyed
hair. The dyes were applied at 40 °C without the use of oxidants
and alkali associated with current commercial hair dyes, with the
best dye uptake observed when the arylazonaphthol dye was employed.
The dyed hair fibers showed good durability to washing, and treatment
of these fibers with Al3+ or Fe3+ ions at 40
°C led to the rapid in situ formation of 1:2
metal/dye structures. In addition, the dyed hair was soft, indicating
that chelated dye occupies the interior of the fibers rather than
the surface. Such an approach can be applied to the coloration of
other materials, including textiles.