The use of the three-dimensional (3D) printing technique is gaining popularity due to its ability to produce products with minimum waste. 3D printing can be used to add polymers onto woven fabrics to produce novel structures. This research work concentrated on the study of the fabric properties affecting the adhesion of Polylactic Acid (PLA) polymer onto selected fabrics. Different fabrics made from cotton, polyester and acrylic, were selected and using 3D printing, PLA polymer was printed onto the fabric surface. Regression models were used to study the effect of selected fabric properties on the adhesion of PLA polymer onto the woven fabrics. The results obtained in this research work indicated that fabric areal density, warp count (Tex), weft count (Tex), fabric thickness and fabric handle indicated a positive correlation with adhesion of PLA onto woven fabrics. On the other hand, warp ends/inch and weft picks/inch showed a negative correlation with the adhesion of PLA polymer onto woven fabrics.

Cellulose acetate was dissolved in trifluoroacetic acid and electrospun onto polypropylene non-woven material. An upstream layer of polypropylene non-woven material was added to form a three-layered polypropylene/cellulose acetate/polypropylene filter. The thickness of the electrospun cellulose acetate layer was varied by changing the electrospinning time. The fabricated filter was then characterized. Cellulose acetate nanofibers were also electrospun onto an aluminum foil collector with the aim of studying the changes in fiber properties when they are electrospun onto the polypropylene non-woven material. The results obtained in this research work indicated that the layer of nanofibers electrospun onto polypropylene non-woven material increased the filtration efficiency of polypropylene non-woven material from 50.23% to 91.29%, but the quality factor reduced by 29.1%. When the cellulose acetate deposition time was increased from 3 h to 6 h, the filtration efficiency further increased to 98.26% and the quality factor increased by 0.6%. A comparison between cellulose acetate nanofibers electrospun using an aluminum foil as the collector and those electrospun directly onto the polypropylene non-woven material indicated that cellulose acetate fibers electrospun onto polypropylene non-woven material had poorer fiber quality properties.

Purpose: The majority of the synthetic dyes have been found to be non-biodegradable, toxic and carcinogenic. As a result, there has been a growing trend toward the use of natural dyes as alternates to synthetic dyes. This shift calls for more research to come up with more sources of natural dyes to satisfy their increasing demand. Euclea divinorum plant has been used traditionally as a source of dye, however, its textile dyeing properties have not been studied. This study aims to determine the textile dyeing properties of E. divinorum extract. Design/methodology/approach: Optimization of dyeing conditions of Euclea divinorum natural dye extract on the cotton fabric was done using response surface methodology (RSM). The combined effects of examined dyeing conditions on the relative color strength (K/S) were studied using a central composite experimental design. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to determine the significance of the statistical model generated for the study. Mordanting effects were measured using standard ISO wash, rub and lightfastness tests. Findings: The optimum dyeing conditions were found to be 68 min, pH 3.3 and 82°C with color strength 0.609. Temperature and pH showed some interaction effects during the dyeing experiments. The predicted optimum K/S value was validated experimentally using the optimum conditions and was found to be in agreement with the experimental values. All the metallic mordants used enhanced the color strength and provided a variety of brown shades, therefore, a suitable alternative for the toxic synthetic dyes. Originality/value: Optimization of dyeing conditions of Euclea divinorum dye on cotton using RSM and mordanting at optimal conditions has not been done elsewhere.