One of the most common ways to prevent mosquito bites is to use treated textiles, which can be
used to repel mosquitoes in the form of nets, clothing, uniforms, and other items. Four eco-friendly
essential oils: lemongrass (Cymbopogon citratus), eucalyptus (Eucalyptus camaldulensis), clove (Dianthus
caryophyllus), and marjoram (Origanum vulgare), were evaluated and used to finish polyester fabrics
(PE) to give them a pleasant odor and antibacterial properties, as well as mosquito repellent as medical
textiles. A low-temperature drying process and thermal stabilization technique were used to bond
the polyester to the fragrance-containing compounds. The effect of essential oil finishes on polyester
textile properties has been studied using various techniques such as mechanical measurements, contact
angle, ultraviolet tests, infrared spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, scanning
electron microscopy, GC-MS analysis, etc. Scanning electron microscopy showed the physical adsorption
of oil on PE surfaces and the penetration of oil droplets between PE fibers. The ability of polyester
textiles treated with essential oils of lemongrass, eucalyptus, clove, and marjoram to kill
Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Candida albicans, and Aspergillus niger was also tested. Polyester
fabrics treated with clove showed the strongest antibacterial effect, surpassing that of eucalyptus oil.
12 essential oils were screened to determine their superiority in repelling mosquitoes at a concentration
of 1% through the CDC bottle and WHO cone tests. Cymbopogon citratus (LT50 ¼ 60.03 min) oil
was the most effective against Cx. pipiens, followed by Eucalyptus camaldulensis (LT50 ¼ 61.65 min) and
Dianthus caryophyllus (LT50 ¼ 64.73 min) with CDC tests. It was found that finishing PE with clove and
eucalyptus oils provided 76 and 68% protection from Culex pipiens mosquitoes, even after 6 cycles of
washing. This approach is innovative because it meets the goal of having antibacterial, mosquitorepellent,
and pleasant-smelling fabrics as requirements for economically viable medical textiles. There
is an urgent need to engineer textiles, with or without insecticides, to effectively repel mosquitoes.
Our data showed the efficiency of polyester fabric treated with clove and eucalyptus oils in repelling
mosquitoes after 6 washings. |
