Citation: Sk, M.S.; Akram, W.; Mia, R.; Fang, J.; Kabir, S.M.M. Fabrication of UV-Protective Polyester Fabric with Polysorbate 20 Incorporating Fluorescent Color. Polymers 2022, 14, 4366. https://doi.org/10.3390/ polym14204366 Academic Editor: Narcisa Vrinceanu Received: 21 September 2022 Accepted: 14 October 2022 Published: 16 October 2022 Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affil- iations. Copyright: © 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https:// creativecommons.org/licenses/by/ 4.0/). polymers Article Fabrication of UV-Protective Polyester Fabric with Polysorbate 20 Incorporating Fluorescent Color Md. Salauddin Sk 1,† , Wasim Akram 2,† , Rony Mia 3, *, Jian Fang 2, * and Shekh Md. Mamun Kabir 1 1 Department of Wet Process Engineering, Bangladesh University of Textiles, Tejgaon, Dhaka 1208, Bangladesh 2 College of Textile and Clothing Engineering, Soochow University, Suzhou 215123, China 3 School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Wuhan Textile University, Wuhan 430200, China * Correspondence: mroni_mia@yahoo.com (R.M.); jian.fang@suda.edu.cn (J.F.) † These authors contributed equally to this work. Abstract: Technological advancement leads researchers to develop multifunctional materials. Con- sidering such trends, this study aimed to conjugate dual functionality in a single material to satisfy aesthetic and functional necessities. We investigated the potentiality of polysorbate 20 to perform as an effective ultraviolet absorber to develop UV-protective fabric. Coumarin derivative (Benzoxazolyl type) disperse dyes are well-known as fluorescent colors. On the other hand, luminescence materials are conspicuous and viable for fashion trends. Deliberate utilization of this inherent property of the dye and incorporation of polysorbate fulfilled the need for dual functionality. In addition, the knitted fabric structure enhanced wearing comfort as well. The effect of polysorbate consolidated the PET fabric as an excellent UV absorber, exhibiting an ultraviolet protection factor (UPF) of 53.71 and a blocking percentage of more than 95% for both UVA and UVB. Surface morphology was studied by scanning electron microscope (SEM). Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) with at- tenuated mode was used to investigate chemical modification. Moreover, X-ray diffraction (XRD) investigated the crystallography of the surface. Reflectance spectrophotometric analysis unveiled the color strength (K/S) of the dyed polyester fabrics. Finally, light fastness assessment revealed that the developed samples could resist a certain amount of photo fading under a controlled testing environment with the increment of ratings towards betterment. Keywords: ultraviolet protection; polyester fabric; polysorbate 20; fluorescent dye 1. Introduction Sunlight radiation is the combination of ultraviolet, infrared, and visible spectrums. The UV spectrum is significant in all aspects and has the potential to cause detrimental effects on human organs. Ultraviolet radiation (UVR) is subdivided into ultraviolet-A (UVA (315–400 nm)), ultraviolet-B (UVB (280–315 nm)), and ultraviolet-C (UVC (100–280 nm)). Nearly 90–99% of UVR that touches the earth’s surface is UVA, while UVB is only 1–10%. UVR adversely affects the skin, causes cellular damage, and alters immunologic functions. In addition, it results in damaged DNA (by forming cyclobutene pyrimidine dimers), immune suppression, inflammatory responses, and oxidative stress leading to skin cancer and photoaging of the skin [1]. UVA radiation promotes the carcinogenesis of skin stem cells. UVB radiation damages DNA, resulting in tumorigenesis and inflammatory responses. UVR concentration can be increased or decreased depending on various factors, among the prominent ones being the ozone layer, which lies in the stratospheric ozone, providing a thin shield, and protecting us from these rays. Total UVC radiation is absorbed by this protective layer. In contrast, most of the UVB radiation and very little UVA radiation are seized only [2,3]. With the depletion of stratospheric ozone, the number of skin cancer patients is increasing dramatically. Researchers revealed a relationship between ozone layer depletion and the number of skin cancer cases, although the modern lifestyle makes things Polymers 2022, 14, 4366. https://doi.org/10.3390/polym14204366 https://www.mdpi.com/journal/polymers