Surface modification of cotton for sustainable antimicrobial cellulose-based products

Our initial BM28 studies utilised synchrotron X-ray Reflectivity (XRR) on silica and Wide-angle X-ray scattering (WAXS) on non-woven cotton to compare their pristine state with that coated with ZIF-8 and curcumin, individually and together. Our findings revealed that the surface coverage depended on the ZIF-8 and curcumin concentrations, confirmed by the SEM imaging of the cotton. Here, we propose a comprehensive XRR and Grazing-Incidence X-ray Scattering (GIXS) investigation to examine the surface structure of silica and cotton modified with ZIF-8 and curcumin, varying their concentrations and ratio ratios. The nanostructural information on the crystallinity of the ZIF-8-curcumin complex under different concentrations will help elucidating the mechanisms underlying the attachment of ZIF-8 to the surface and curcumin-ZIF-8 complexation, underpinning our overall effort to understand the influence of this novel complex on cotton fiber softness.