Preparation of afterglow and photochromic fibrous mats from polypropylene plastics to detect ultraviolet light

Abstract

Polypropylene textiles have been used in the development of various industrial products, such as automotives, plastic furniture, and medical tools. However, polypropylene resists dyeing due to a deficiency of active staining spots. Here, we developed a new strategy towards new afterglow and photochromic fibres from recycled polypropylene plastics using plasma‐supported coloration with rare‐earth activated aluminate nanoparticles (REANPs). Plasma curing was used to generate active dyeing sites on the polypropylene surface. A thin film of REANPs (2–10 nm) was deposited onto the plasma‐pretreated polypropylene surface. Various analytical techniques were applied to inspect the morphology of the REANP‐finished polypropylene fibres. The polypropylene dyeing activity was much improved after being exposed to plasma. Both photoluminescence analysis and Commission internationale de l’éclairage (CIE) laboratory coordinates proved that the polypropylene fibres exhibited a white colour in daylight and green in ultraviolet light. The thin afterglow layer immobilized onto the polypropylene surface exhibited an emission band of 524 nm upon excitation at 365 nm. The sliding angles dropped from 12° to 9°, but the contacting angles increased from 139.4° to 145.0° when the REANP ratio was raised. These findings show that REANP‐finished polypropylene had good colourfastness, antimicrobial activity, and ultraviolet light blocking. Both stiffness and permeability to air of REANP‐finished polypropylene were explored to designate excellent comfort characteristics.

Smart and intelligent optical materials for sensing applications

“…The obtained results showed that ceria‐doped zinc oxide had good photoactivity related to nano zinc oxide particles for methylene blue dye deterioration by passing UV light. El‐Hefnawy et al [57] developed polypropylene plastic‐based afterglow and photochromic fibrous mats, demonstrating excellent colour resistance, antimicrobial action, and UV light‐blocking capacity. Finally, Fredrick et al [58] developed DNA‐templated silver nanoclusters (AgNC@DNA) to determine cancer‐associated miRNA via a fluorescence switching method.…”

Hybrid Organic–Inorganic PMMA Optical Fibers Functionalized with Photochromic Active WO3 Nanoparticles: From Materials Design to Photochromic Fabrics

“…[23] The luminescent emission in PMMA samples co-doped by trivalent rare earth elements was also reported. [24,25] The main elaboration methods to embed the doping elements within the PMMA matrix consist of adding the dopants to the monomer mixture during the pre-polymerization step, [26] the direct mechanical mixing of the dopants with the melted PMMA during the extrusion process [27] or in soaking the dopant molecules into the microstructure fiber using the solution-doping method. [28] In our work, we present a new class of transparent PMMA fibers doped with transition metal oxide-based photochromic materials, namely tungsten oxide compounds (WO 3 ), for X-chromic applications.…”

Properties of Cellulose/Polypropylene Nanocomposites Modified by KH550 Silane Coupling Agent

“…In recent years, polypropylene has been the second-largest general-purpose plastic used in China [1] . The price is low, and it has the advantages of being odorless and having low heat processing temperature, so it is widely used daily.…”