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The purpose of this paper is to use the natural wastage plant product, bannana pseudostem sap (BPS) for using as fire retardant of cellulosic textile substrate. The study aims to use first time any wastage plant product for making fire retardant cellulosic textile. In this regard flame retardant functionality was imparted in cellulosic textile using BPS, an eco-friendly natural wastage product.

The extracted sap was made alkaline and applied in pre-mordanted bleached and mercerized cotton fabrics. Flame retardant properties of the control and treated fabrics were analyzed in terms of limiting oxygen index (LOI), horizontal and vertical flammability and total heat of combustion using bomb calorimeter. The thermal degradation and pyrolysis was studied using thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). The chemical composition of the control and BPS treated cellulosic fabric were analyzed by FTIR, SEM and EDX. Durability of the flame retardant functionality to soap washing had also been studied.

The study showed that the treated fabrics had good flame retardant property compared to control fabrics. The LOI value was found to increase by 1.6 times after application of BPS. As a result of this, the fabric does not catch flame. In horizontal flammability, the treated fabric showed burning with afterglow (without presence of flame) with a propagation rate of 7.5 mm/min, which is almost ten times lower than the control fabric. After application of BPS cellulosic fabric sample produced natural khaki colour. There was no significant change in other physical properties.

The application process is simple and cost-effective as no costly chemicals were used. Further advantage is that the treated fabric could also be considered as natural dyed cotton fabric. The developed khaki colour is quite attractive and stable to sun light exposure. This developed process could used in colouration and flame retardant finishing of home furnishing products such as home-window curtain, railway curtain, hospital curtain, table lamp and as a covering material of non-permanent structure like in book fair, festival, religious purpose, etc., where large quantity of textile is used and has chance of fire hazards.

BPS abundantly available in Indian as well as other countries and it is normally considered as waste material. It is eco-friendly and produced from renewable source. Therefore, the application of BPS in cotton textile for colouration and functionalization will give the advantages of value addition using natural product. Rural people will be benifited lot by applying this technology whenever it required.

This paper helps to clarify first time why and how a wastage plant product like BPS can be used for preparing fire retardant cotton cellulosic fabric.