Abstract
Desizing of cotton and micropoly fabrics was done using thermostable xylanase from Bacillus pumilus ASH. Micropoly fabric showed better desizing than cotton under same conditions. Violet scale readings from the TEGEWA test after enzymatic desizing for 90 min at pH 7.0 and at 60°C showed the readings falling in the range of 4-5, indicating good desizing efficiency. During bioscouring the weight loss values and liberation of reducing sugars were highest when EDTA was used along with xylanase. The weight loss value of 1.5% was observed for dry cotton fabric after 1 h in case of agitated system at pH 7.0 and at an optimal enzyme dosage of 5 IU/g. The weight loss values and the liberation of reducing sugars were higher in case of cotton fabrics. Wetting time of fabrics was lowered significantly after 60 min of bioscouring using xylanase. Increase in temperature or concentration of surfactant led to further reduction in the wetting time. The whiteness values of fabrics after bioscouring were 0.9% higher than the chemically scoured fabrics indicating good efficacy of xylanase during the scouring process.