Development of Natural Dyes for the Batik Textile Industry in Sri Lanka

Batik Textiles has become more demanding in the current fashion mode in the Sri Lankan market, but the expensive, synthetic azo dyes usage in the batik textile industry causes carcinogenic health risks to employees and customers. To overcome this, it is crucial to develop a nontoxic, low-cost, environmentally friendly alternative dyes that promotes worker and customer safety. This study attempts to develop natural dyes derived from mahogany shale, marigold flowers, rambutan peel, onion peel and mangosteen peel onto cotton and blue line poplin fabrics. The natural dyes were extracted from direct extraction by using distilled water (M1), Soxhlet extraction by using Ethyl acetate (M2) and Soxhlet extraction by using distilled water (M3), to assess their polarity, intensity, and stability on the textiles in comparison to synthetic batik dyes.