A preliminary study on the preparation of seamless tubular bacterial cellulose-electrospun nanofibers-based nanocomposite fabrics

Due to various production stages involved, textiles and clothing industry is known for causing carbon dioxide emissions, water pollution, soil erosion and huge waste generation. It is a need of the hour to seek for natural, renewable, and bio-degradable fabrication materials and environmentally friendly production methods. This study proposes an eco-friendly approach to prepare bacterial cellulose/electrospun nanofibers membrane-based hybrid non-woven fabrics using in-situ self-assembly method. This fabrication method enables bacterial cellulose cultivation on nanofibrous membrane support to create custom-made seamless tubular hybrid fabrics in desirable dimensions, to be used for various textile applications with minimized material wastage. As-prepared nano-composite fabric was characterized using SEM, X-ray diffraction, and FTIR. FTIR and X-ray diffraction results confirmed the presence of bacterial cellulose in the composite structure. SEM analysis showed as the bacterial cellulose cultivates, its nano...