Optimizing Supercritical Carbon Dioxide in the Bacterial Inactivation and Cleaning of Sheep Wool Fiber by Using Response Surface Methodology

• Published in: Journal of natural fibers 2022-10, Vol.19 (14), p.8399-8414
• Main Authors: Allafi, Faisal Aboelkasim, Hossain, Md Sohrab, Shaah, Marwan, Lalung, Japarang, Ab Kadir, Mohd Omar, Ahmad, Mardiana Idayu
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Bacteria; bacterial inactivation; Carbon dioxide; Cleaning; Deactivation; dry clean; Enterobacter cloacae; Gram-negative bacteria; Gram-positive bacteria; Inactivation; Klebsiella; Optimization; Parameters; Polynomials; Pressure; Rabbits; Response surface methodology; Sheep; Sheep wool fiber; sterilization; supercritical co; supercritical co2; Survival; Textile industry; Wool; wool whiteness; 干洗; 消毒; 细菌灭活; 羊毛白度; 羊毛纤维; 超临界
• ISSN: 1544-0478; 1544-046X
• DOI: 10.1080/15440478.2021.1964131

In the textile industry, sheep wool undergoes treatment with a lengthy water-based procedure. In the present study, supercritical carbon dioxide (scCO 2) was applied as a waterless technology to clean sheep wool fiber and inactivate gram-positive bacteria (Bacillus Velezensis, Bacillus amyloliquefaciens, Exiguobacterium, Bacillus cereus) and gram-negative bacteria (Klebsiella pneumoniae and Enterobacter cloacae) present in sheep wool fiber. Response surface methodology (RSM) was used to determine the optimal experimental conditions of scCO 2 parameters (pressure, temperature, and time) on the maximum inactivation of bacteria (log survival) and whiteness index (stensby) of treated sheep wool. The optimal experimental condition of scCO 2 was determined as the pressure of 29 MPa, the temperature of 55°C for 75 min treatment time to obtain the complete inactivation of bacteria (−6.2 log survival), and 26 stensby of whiteness index. The results demonstrated that the second-order polynomial model was adequately fitted with experimental data. The analyses of the influences of scCO 2 parameters reveal that the scCO 2 pressure, temperature, time, their interection, and quadratic effects potentially influence the inactivation of bacteria and the whiteness index of sheep wool fiber.