Application of ZnO nanoparticles for Producing Antibacterial Batik

The government of Indonesia has launched a program of 'Making Indonesia 4.0' since April 4th 2018. The program is an integrated roadmap to implement a number of strategic action to enter the 4.0 Industrial era. One of the strategic initiatives is the development of functional clothing by producing a cloth that has multifunctional properties, such as antibacterial clothing. Batik, a traditional cloth is originally from Indonesia. It is fabricated by applying hot wax onto a fabric to create a pattern before colouring process which is then removed in the final stage. Since people use batik in daily life for clothing and household appliances, it is worth to produce antibacterial batik. This research aimed to make antibacterial batik by applying zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles to the material of batik i.e. cotton. Colouring process was conducted by synthetic dyes of indigosol. To see the effect of ZnO application, the antibacterial activity, the colour fastness to washing, the colour strength (K/S) and surface morphology of batik have been examined. The results showed that the batik exhibited antibacterial activity due to the incorporation of ZnO onto the fabric. The colour strength was also enhanced. To maintain the colour fastness to washing, the ZnO should be applied to the fabric before the batik process.