Wood-Rotting Fungal Pigments as Colorant Coatings on Oil-Based Textile Dyes: A detailed view of the interaction between the fungal pigments and some commercial fabrics

The use of fungal pigments could start an interesting path in different industries. Although, there is much work to do in order to understand how fungal pigments work and interact with different materials. The goal of this research is to find out how fungal pigments, when specifically carried in raw linseed oil, behave in fabrics, and compare these color results with DCM-based pigments. Of specific interest is the colorfastness of the oil-based pigments (through washing, crocking, bleaching, and weathering), and how the pigments bind to the textiles as compared to the pigments carried in DCM. This work prepares the fungal pigments to fully enter into the commercial dye industry by assessing the viability of a more eco-friendly carrier and removing the largest hurdle currently facing soft-rot fungal pigments—their DCM requirement for application. Should the pigments remain stable when carried in raw linseed oil and under changes in temperature and pH, their applications could be expanded from the textile market into areas like paint, decking sealant, and other oil-based applications.

Mardonio Palomino was born in Peru, and is currently pursuing a Master of Science degree in Wood Science and Engineering at OSU. He did his undergraduate at the Universidad Nacional Agraria La Molina in Lima, Peru studying in the program of Forest Engineering. He has been working in sustainability projects for private organization. In 2015 he met Dr. Robinson and became interested in her work, and shortly joined her lab in 2016. Mardonio is looking for more experience in the sustainability sector in textiles and dyeing process and will defend his research in the Summer of 2018.