Self-assembly of cellulose fibers and polyoxometalate for stable photoluminescence

Smart, responsive clothing refers to textiles that exhibit a response to specific stimuli, resulting in a modification of their inherent characteristics. One specific class focuses on luminescence materials, which emit light of different colors when exposed to light excitation. A luminescent cotton fabric based on padding technique is obtained in this case. The aforementioned textile is produced by the utilization of an aqueous-based formulation that incorporates an inorganic polyoxometalate. The excitation peaks are present at 262 nm, while a series of emission peaks are present at range of 580–701 nm, in the photoluminescent cotton fabric. Furthermore, the fluorescent optical photo, scanning electron microscope, elemental mapping, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, fluorescence emission, and UV–vis absorption data of the treated cotton fabric are described. A reversible rapid response was additionally demonstrated by the treated fabric during the emission of red light with the chromatic coordinate (0.6425, 0.3570) under ultra-violet excitation. Besides, the lifetime-decay behavior is consistent with a single-exponential function with τ = 2.4 ms and the possible process of the energy transfer from POMs to Eu3+ is exhibited. It is posited that the utilization of the concept and composite materials holds potential for the advancement and diversification of smart and multi-functional fabric domains.