Scalable Fabrication of Fabrics Dyed with Wool Powder and Its Deodorization Performance

Superfine powder obtained from waste natural polymer is a renewable resource that is capable of absorbing odor and being used as pigment for textile finishing. So far, the application of these powder materials has been limited only to only laboratory scale. How to unlock the limitations for continuous production on an industrial scale has not been revealed yet. In this study, we addressed the limitations of using wool powder as finishing agent in water-based paste for textile functionalization by using a pad–dry–cure method. This includes optimizing the formulation of wool powder suspension and producing 100 m long colored textile. Both the functionalized cotton and polyester fabrics effectively showed coloration effects with good washing colorfastness and designed color shades (K/S between 0.02–1.09) through adjustment of the wool powder concentration in the finishing paste. Furthermore, the functionalized fabrics showed almost a doubled odor removal rate toward acetic acid odor than pristine fabrics, indicating their deodorizing ability for air purification and body odor control. The odor adsorption mechanism was further verified by in situ FTIR analysis and DFT calculations. This biodegradable superfine powder from recycled waste resources could be a promising pigment for manufacturing deodorizing textiles with designable patterns on a large scale, not only contributing to the diversification of natural fiber products but also maintaining the sustainable development of the textile industry and environmental purification.