Eco-Friendly DyesFCS 563Dr. Cao

February 10th, 2015Africa Martinez & Michelle Levy

History of Natural Dyes

• The first recorded mention of fabric dyeing dates back to 2600 BC (Devi, et. al 2013)

• Those same dyes were also used for painting prehistoric caves, which emerged in places like El Castillo, Spain, some 40,000 years ago (Devi, et. al 2013)

• Purple, in ancient times equaled its weight in Gold, and currently the most expensive color to mix Meena (zady.com)

• However, after the invention of synthetic dyes, at the end of the 19th century, natural dyes were forgotten and abandoned as a part from history because of its negligence, time consuming and cost (zady.com)

• Synthetic dyes needed R&D from the “Natural Dyes” to learn their structure to then be synthesized in the lab (http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/174980/dye)

• Natural dyes influenced the creation of pharmaceuticals: Discovery of yellow dye flavine killed the germs (http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/174980/dye)

Comparison of Synthetic vs. Naturalhttp://www.dharmatrading.com/home/synthetic-vs-natural-dyes.html

Synthetic • environmental and health

hazard problems • The wastewater from

textile plants is classified as the most polluting of all the industrial sectors

• Efficient, easily accessible

Natural• natural dyes offer a fairly limited

range of colors• The natural dyes are fast in

staining, long-lasting, renewable, bio-degradable and eco-friendly

• Mordants used and some leafs are poisonous

What is Eco-Friendly? &Interchangeable industry terms (Braggs, 2008).

• "eco-friendly" simply means that something is less threatening to the environment (ex: hemp thread)

• “sustainable" means reusable or recycled

(ex: Repurposed Jeans)

• "renewable" means the product can reproduce itself ( ex: bamboo)

• “organic" fibers are all natural (ex: flax)

• "conventional" in fabrics contain; pesticides dyes and chemicals (ex: oxford)

Importance of Eco-Friendly & Natural Dye

• Use of natural dyes would solve the human and environmental hazardous problems associated with synthetic dyes (Gharanjig et. al, 2013)

• Chemical dyeing can cause significant environmental damage and harm to workers if not handled properly (Sundrarajan et. al, 2012)

• Suggestions by us:- Society needs to come together for a major shift- Less water would be wasted if new methods are researched and

developed

Prickly Pear

• Fun facts:• One of the plants of the cactacoae family• Grows in Africa, Australia & Mediterranean basin• Prickly pear juice is used as natural dyeMeena Devi. V, N,

N Ariharan V, and P Nagendrarasad. "Annatto: Eco- friendly and Potential Source for Natural Dye." International Research Journal of Pharmacy, 4 (2013): 106-108.

Betalain Pigment• Betalain pigment is extracted from prickly pear• Betalains are a group of nitrogen containing pigments that

are yellow, orange, pink, red, and purple in color• Betalains have NO toxic effects in the human body and are

seen as a natural and safe alternative to synthetic red coloring. Meena Devi. V, N, N Ariharan V, and P Nagendrarasad. "Annatto: Eco-friendly and

Potential Source for Natural Dye." International Research Journal of Pharmacy, 4 (2013): 106-108.

What’s New in the Industry?• Silkworms: The process of “intrinsically coloring”

was designed specifically for silk. It involves feeding silkworms their usual diet of mulberry leaves while mixing in a little bit of fluorescent dye. It is an efficient, easy process that saves huge amounts of water that would have otherwise been wasted on dyeing the silk, and takes away the need for harsh chemicals that harm the environment and textile workers (http://startupfashion.com/ecofriendly-fabric-dyeing-alternatives )

Naturaly colored silk:

• The Institute of Materials Research and Engineering (IMRE) , states that a team of Scientists in Singapore have discovered a new way to naturally color silk

• Not mainstream yet • Feed worms mulberry leafs for diet http://www.imre.a-star.edu.sg/

New in the Industry?

• German-based design studio Blond & Bieber

• Once the algae is grown, filtered and distilled, it can be naturally tinted and made into a dye paste that’s ready for printing

• Algaemy dyes do not fade, instead they brighten (from pale pink to bright red) http://startupfashion.com/natural-fabric-dyeing-algaemy

YOUTUBE VIDEO for DYE FARMSExplains what a dye farm is and what type of

sustainable ways dye is created through natural plant farming

http://youtu.be/ALEQT7HXZTc

• Natural Dye Farms hold great responsibility for upholding sustainable ways to create dye.

• Natural dye farms are what’s in right now as they are more popular than ever for creating huge volumes of natural dye.

Fun Facts:

•  90% of clothing is dyed synthetically, and critics say you can tell the next season’s hit hue by the color of the rivers in China (zady.com).

• There is an increased interest in sustainable fashion, therefore a reawaken of the art of natural dyeing (zady.com).

• 97% of the global textile fiber market consists of non-sustainable materials http://monocel.com/sustainability/  

REFERENCES• Meena Devi. V, N, N Ariharan V, and P Nagendrarasad. "Annatto: Eco-friendly and Potential Source for Natural Dye." International Research Journal of

Pharmacy, 4 (2013): 106-108.

• Braggs, D. (2008, Apr 07). Fashion goes eco-friendly. Newhouse News Service Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/454619863?accountid=7285

• Viel, C. (2005). Natural dyes and dyeing from the xviith century to the birth of synthetic dyes. Revue D'histoire De La Pharmacie, 53(347), 327.

• https://zady.com/features/the-history-of-fabric-dye

• https://www.google.com/search?q=prickly+pear&biw=1920&bih=936&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=LxrZVIGSB4ztoASPqoHYAg&sqi=2&ved=0CAYQ_AUoAQ

• http://youtu.be/ALEQT7HXZTc

• http://startupfashion.com/ecofriendly-fabric-dyeing-alternatives

• http://www.imre.a-star.edu.sg/

• http://monocel.com/sustainability/

• http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/174980/dye

• Gharanjig, H. , Gharanjig, K. , & Tafaghodi, S. (2013). Stability of dye dispersions in the presence of some eco-friendly dispersing agents. Journal of Surfactants and Detergents, 16(6), 849-856.

• Sundrarajan, M. , Gandhi, R. , Suresh, J. , Gowri, S. , & Selvam, S. (2012). Natural dyeing of silk fabric using eco-friendly mordants. Asian Journal of Chemistry, 24(7), 3109-3112.