A team from the Alcoy campus of the Universitat Politècnica de València (UPV), the Research Institute for Chemical Technology (ITQ, CSIC-UPV), the Research Institute for Mediterranean Agroforestry (IAM UPV) and the Joint Research Unit between the UPV and the Health Research Institute at La Fe Hospital in Valencia (UPV-IISLaFe) has developed a new self-disinfecting cotton fabric capable of eliminating bacteria, fungi and viruses in hospital settings using visible light.
"The material incorporates two photoactive compounds which, when exposed to light, generate a highly reactive form of oxygen that damages the microorganisms adhering to the fabric, thereby eliminating them," explains Alberto Blázquez-Moraleja (ITQ CSIC-UPV).
"We aim to develop fabrics capable of reducing the presence of microorganisms such as bacteria, fungi and viruses in hospitals and other healthcare settings, thereby mitigating some of the problems associated with conventional antimicrobials, such as a loss of efficacy with use or when washed, or the promotion of resistant microorganisms. And that is precisely what we have achieved in this study," says Marilés Bonet of the Textile and Paper Engineering Department at the UPV's Alcoy campus.
Effective against bacteria, fungi and viruses
In laboratory tests, the fabric completely inactivated Escherichia coli within 60 minutes and Enterococcus faecalis within 20 minutes when exposed to light. It also achieved a reduction in Candida albicans within three hours.
"The material also retains a significant proportion of its activity after repeated washes. Even after 20 cycles, it maintained a bactericidal efficacy above the reference levels used for antimicrobial fabrics," says Pilar Moya, from the UPV's Research Institute for Mediterranean Agroforestry.
Tested in a real healthcare setting, in patients' rooms
The hospital validation was carried out in the rooms of 12 patients at La Fe University and Polytechnic Hospital in Valencia. The fabrics were placed in two areas of the rooms for 48 hours: the bed rails, exposed to light, and the mattresses, which received less light. In addition, the research team used untreated cotton fabrics as a control.
"In the hospital rooms, the fabric exposed to light accumulated 75% fewer microorganisms than a conventional cotton fabric placed under the same conditions. When the material was placed in an area without direct light, the reduction was much lower, just 25%, confirming that its antimicrobial effect depends largely on lighting. The efficacy was particularly high against Gram-positive bacteria, with their presence reduced by 77.5%, notes Inmaculada Andreu from the UPV-IIS La Fe Joint Research Unit.
As the team of researchers highlights, the process used to manufacture this fabric could be easily integrated into standard textile-finishing techniques, facilitating the large-scale development of new self-disinfecting textiles for hospitals. The study has been published in *ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces*.
Reference
Martínez-González, I.; Gisbert-Payá, J.; Marin, M. L.; Delgado, S. G.; García-Lainez, G.; Bonet-Aracil, M.; Bosca, F.; Ayala, I.; Mateos-Pujante, A.; Moya, P.; Blazquez-Moraleja, A.; Andreu, I.. Light-Driven Antimicrobial Cotton Fabric: Multilayer Dye-Finishing Design and Hospital Environment Validation. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 18, 43747–43759 (2026). DOI: 10.1021/acsami.6c08865.
