Scouring of cotton using marine pectinase

•Scouring of cotton by conventional alkaline method and by using marine pectinase has been compared.•Scouring efficiency is evaluated by studying mechanical and physicochemical properties of the cotton fabric.•Bioscouring using marine pectinase gives comparable results as that of the alkaline scoured fabric.•Bioscouring using pectinase from marine B. Subtilis proves to be efficient alternative to conventional alkaline scouring of cotton.

Bioscouring refers to the enzymatic removal of impurities from cotton fibre, which endows it with improved hydrophilicity for further wet processes. In this study, the efficacy of pectinase from newly isolated marine bacteria Bacillus subtilis, isolated from marine sediment; collected from Chinchani beach, Tarapore, India has been evaluated for scouring of cotton fabric and compared with conventional alkaline scouring of cotton. Use of Citrus limetta peel powder as pectin substrate for enzyme production renders pectinase production process more economically viable. Scouring carried out with pectinase dose of 10% (2.8 IU/g of the fabric) on the weight of the fabric at pH 7, 60 °C for 120 min yielded hydrophilic fabric. Physicochemical and mechanical properties of the pectinase scoured fabric were similar to alkaline scoured fabric. Scouring with pectinase preserves fiber's structure and prevents it from deterioration as observed from tensile strength, FTIR and SEM studies against alkaline scoured fabric. Enhanced dye uptake was also observed in case of pectinase scoured cotton fabric as compared to alkaline scoured fabric.

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