Study on Proteolytic Treatment of Textile Fabric Softness and Smoothening using Halophilic Bacterial Biopolymers

In this study, we have carried out the course of study on proteolytic treatment of fabric surface cotton based on Halophilic bacterial biopolymers. The halophilic bacteria Vibrio harveyi, Halomonas sp, Vibrio fluvialis, and Halobacterium sp., strains were isolated from soil samples collected from Pichavaram Mangrove forest, India. The crude extract of the biopolymers were separated from the cell free supernatant using the 95% cold ethanol and dialyzed. This biopolymer were studied soluble in water and insoluble in any organic solvents tested; gelation occurred under alkaline conditions in the presence of divalent cations in which as CuSo4 gave the best result, including stabilizing effects on oilwater emulsions with a variety of vegetable oils as well as flocculating effects against activated carbon powder after 5min and the highest flocculating activity was observed in biopolymer no2. However, biopolymer no1, 3 and 4 showed poor flocculating effects. Moreover, the proteins were isolated by protein electrophoresis and Laemmli assay. The biopolymers were applied to the textile fabric after dye bath. Biopolymer no.2 and 3 had good proteolytic activity and gave smoothness to the applied fabric. Biopolymer no. 1 and 4 gave not so much smoothness than the biopolymer no. 2 and 3.