Retting of banana pseudostem fibre using Bacillus strains to get excellent mechanical properties as biomaterial in textile & fiber industry

Banana pseduostem (BP) fibre, sometimes known as banana fibre, is a new natural fibre with potential commercial applications in the textile and fibre industries. Softening these fibres might enhance their mechanical qualities, allowing them to be used in more textile applications. The current research looks at the softening of banana fibres (Musa paradisiaca L) utilising a variety of chemical (NaOH & HCl) and bacterial treatments. Physical (Hygroscopicity, Density, Linear density), chemical (cellulose, Hemi-cellulose and Lignin) and mechanical parameters (Peak load, Breaking Elongation, Tenacity) of the treated fibres were measured as per normal technique with raw banana fibres. The tenacity (g/tex) of microbial treated (Bacillus licheniformis) (7 days) fibre was found to be greater, at 6.33, but the average peak elongation (%) of (Bacillus Subtilis) was found to be higher, at 8.2. The lignin % of untreated Banana fibres (15.98%) was reduced in fibres treated with 5N of NaOH (10.75%), 5N HCl (8.73%), Bacillus aryabhattai (11.4%), Bacillus licheniformis (12.54%) and Bacillus Subtilis (13.56%). In contrast to raw banana fibre, the mechanical qualities of treated fibres showed incremental results. Finally, the study found that treating banana fibre with NaOH, HCl and Bacillus sp. had a substantial impact on the physiochemical parameters. SEM and FTIR methods were used to validate the efficiency of the bacterial treatment.