Optimisation of Dyeing and Mordanting Parameters on Cotton Fabrics Treated With Allium Cepa as a Natural Dye Source

Onion peel is having rich source of colorant and found to be waste in large quantities. This can be used for dyeing of textile materials as a sustainable eco-friendly approach. In the present study cotton fabrics were dyed with onion peel dye extracted by using Soxhlet apparatus. Four different mordants like Amla, Myrobalan, Pomegranate Rind and Chitosan were used in different concentrations in order to optimize the right combination. Design of experiment was used for selection of various combinations in order to carry out dyeing process. The color strength was measured using spectrophotometer and also measured the fastness properties of dyed samples. Out of four different mordants chitosan was found to be showing highest K/S values in pre-mordanting method. Fastness properties for almost all the samples were found to be average.