Microencapsulation of essential oils and phase change materials for applications in textile products

Abstract

The paper reports the development and testing of three types of microcapsules for applications in textile products, namely microencapsulation of antimicrobial essential oils of sage, lavender and rosemary for nonwoven textile shoe insoles; smell-based animal repellents for agricultural textiles, designed to protect plants against damage caused by deer and rabbits;

and paraffinic phase change materials (PCMs) for active thermal control garments. <i>In situ</i> polymerisation of melamine-formaldehyde prepolymers was used as the microencapsulation technology in all three cases, based on partly methylated trimethylolmelamine and hexamethoxymethylolmelamine resin as wall materials and a styrene-maleic acid anhydride copolymer as a modifying agent. The microencapsulation process was modified to achieve the desired characteristics of microcapsule walls (different permeability and sensitivity/ resistance to pressure).Bibliometric trends in microencapsulation technology with special reference to textile industries have also been discussed with an overview of main application fields and uses of microencapsulated additives in textile products.