Quality Testing of Naturally Dyed Fabric Using Powdered Dye from Cocoa Pod Husks (Theobroma cacao) with the Application of Mordants

Abstract

In cocoa production and processing, cocoa pod husks are considered waste, but they can be developed for beneficial use. This study extracted cocoa pod husks using salt precipitation method to create a powder dye for natural fabric dyeing. The dye powder underwent testing for fabric dyeing using tie-dye techniques, color padding in eco-printing, and dyeing cotton yarn for weaving. Potassium alum, limewater, and ferrous sulfate, commonly used as mordants in natural fabric dyeing, were utilized to help fix the color. The study found that the dye powder production process yielded 26.29% of the initial weight of the cocoa pod husks. When the dye quality was tested by analyzing the color values (L*, a*, b*) and color strength, it was found that the dyeing process could produce shades of light brown, dark brown, and grayish-black using alum, limewater, and ferrous sulfate as mordants, respectively. The test results for the quality of naturally dyed fabrics showed that using alum and limewater as mordants provided moderate to good durability against washing, water, sweat, artificial sunlight, and rubbing for each dyeing method. Using ferrous sulfate as a mordant provided the highest level of durability in all fabric dyeing methods. This study concludes that using dye powder extracted from cocoa pod husks through salt precipitation for natural fabric dyeing offers a viable approach to utilizing waste from the cocoa production process.