Obtención de tinte de diferentes partes de la planta de eucalipto para teñido de fibra de alpaca

Abstract

This research aimed to obtain dyes from eucalyptus leaves, bark, and sawdust (Eucalyptus globulus) for dyeing alpaca fiber (Vicugna pacos). The study was conducted in the Agro-Industrial Fiber Laboratory of the Faculty of Animal Sciences at ESPOCH. The sheared alpaca fiber came from the Aña Moyocancha experimental station and was subsequently processed to obtain and dye the yarn. In the dyeing process, 15 experimental units were used, each one comprising 200 grams of alpaca fiber yarn, distributed under a completely randomized design (CRD) with three experimental treatments: Treatment 1: eucalyptus leaves + alum, Treatment 2: eucalyptus bark + alum, and Treatment 3: eucalyptus sawdust + alum. The study variables for the dye were refractive index and pH. The variables considered for the dyed yarn were tensile strength (N/cm²), elongation (%), lightfastness (points), and cost-benefit. The physicochemical analyses of the dye reported refractive index values that did not differ statistically (1.30 and 1.36), while the best pH resulted from sawdust (3.74). In the physical-mechanical tests, tensile strength (7974 and 9323.27 N/cm²), elongation (30 and 33.14%), and lightfastness (4.8 and 5 points) showed no differences among the treatments. Also, the findings reported a higher economic response when dyeing with eucalyptus sawdust, with a cost-benefit ratio of $1.17. It is concluded that eucalyptus parts, as natural dyes, are efficient in dyeing as they do not influence the characteristics of the yarn. It is recommended to study other possible mordants to be used with eucalyptus to expand the colour range.